Trademarking firearms or firearm-related components is not so simple as picking any name that sounds cool to you or slapping a random new logo you’ve created on a product.
A trademark is one of the foundations for any brand. It’s basically the logo or symbol and/or word or phrase that distinguishes a business’s products and services from competitors and helps everyday people to identify that business immediately.
Think of any of your favorite brands or companies right now and the trademarks are probably what come to mind first (besides the products themselves). For example, Nike’s trademarks include their iconic ‘Swoosh’ logo as well as their slogan “Just Do It.”
As you can imagine, it’s very, very important for any new business (regardless of industry) to make sure that any trademarks they have are original, unique, and legal to prevent infringement. The firearms market in particular is at least somewhat unique because of how tightly regulated it is. On top of that, new businesses in the firearms industry are subject to more stringent trademark rules than other industries.
In this article, we’ll dive into what these specific trademark challenges are, and then we’ll outline and discuss the three major pitfalls that new firearms business owners often find themselves in this regard and how they can avoid them.
The Inherent Complexities of Trademarking Firearm-Related Terms
Most new companies get their trademarks by applying through the relevant trademark office (like the USPTO in the U.S.) to protect things like their brand name, logo, or slogan. They have to show that their trademark is unique and not too similar to any existing ones, and then once approved, it gives them exclusive rights to use that trademark for their goods or services.
In a nutshell, a trademark is basically a way to legally protect your brand identity. And as a new business owner in the firearms industry, you might think it will be the same process for you…but not quite.
The biggest hurdle is that the USPTO (United States Patent and Trademark Office) is very sensitive to the language and imagery that are used in firearms trademarks.
Why?
Simple: they’re trying to avoid promoting violence or making things appear more dangerous than they actually are. Even though gun violence rates have been declining in the United States in recent years, the USPTO doesn’t want to allow any trademarks that directly suggest or encourage violence and gun companies need to be considerate of that.
Take, for example, a hypothetical gun company that wants to use terms like “Killer Arms” or “Bulletproof” for its business name or in its logo or slogan is likely to encounter pushback from the USPTO. The USPTO has a long history of rejecting trademarks that seem to glorify violence or that exaggerate what the products of the company are capable of.
In this case, the USPTO may be suspicious of a company that wants to trademark terms like ‘Killer Arms’ (for obvious reasons), or ‘Bulletproof’ if its products are not literally so.
The most likely result here?
A trademark rejection.
Then there’s the regulatory angle. Beyond the USPTO itself, the firearms industry is also governed by a thick web of regulations at the Federal, state, and local levels. Some words or logos may pass the USPTO, but still violate these other laws.
As an example, the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) has specific guidelines that must be followed in regards to marketing or advertising firearms. Even if a name is available and approved to be registered by the USPTO, it may not be in compliance with the FTC.
The trick here is doing your homework and researching not only trademark availability but also understanding how your soon-to-be trademarked logo, slogan, and name can fit within the broader regulatory framework of the gun industry.
This article is here to help you out as part of that homework. Next are the three most common pitfalls with trademarking firearm companies face, and how your gun company can steer clear of each of them.
Pitfall 1 – Trademarking Violent or Misleading Terms
Like we’ve already explored a little bit above, easily one of the biggest legal ‘landmines’ a gun company can find themselves in is choosing terms or logos that are violent or misleading.
Maybe you really want to name a new handgun you’ve invented as the ‘DeathBlaster Mark I,’ for example. That name would certainly stand out! But it’s also very likely to get shot down (pun intended) by the USPTO before the FTC has even had a say since it won’t pass the ‘public safety’ test. Using terms like ‘Gunfighter’ or ‘Killer Shot’ will also fall into this same pitfall.
The USPTO is very wary of approving names or slogans that could be interpreted as promoting violence, breaking the law, or anything that’s unsafe. So while you may personally see these kinds of terms as catchy or likely to attract attention from potential customers, the trademark office will most likely (as in most certainly) interpret them as too aggressive and problematic.
So, how do you avoid this pitfall?
Simple: you need to think very carefully about how your slogan or name will be perceived by the USPTO, FTC, and the general public. Avoid any terms that are glamorizing or hinting at violence or that make any exaggerated claims. Try to keep things neutral and mild. Look at the trademarks of any existing companies who make firearms or firearm-related accessories, and you’ll see what we mean.
Pitfall 2 – Failing to Perform Comprehensive Trademark Searches
This is the pitfall that many new gun companies overlook, and it’s one that can come back to bite you big time as well.
If you don’t conduct a comprehensive search on any slogans or logos that you’re looking to trademark, you could be opening yourself up to costly legal disputes later on. The firearms industry is already filled with trademarks, and many may already be similar to the one(s) you are trying to create.
Infringing upon another trademark will invite you to cease-and-desist letters and rebranding efforts, and even lawsuits in extreme cases. All of this will also most likely severely damage your company’s reputation and delay new product or service launches.
You may think it’s easy to avoid using a slogan or logo that’s similar to what’s already out there if you just do a little research, but the issue here is that the USPTO search tools are limited. Just because a name is available for registration doesn’t mean it’s clear of potential conflicts with other companies, for example.
There are countless cases where companies believed they had a unique name, only to find out later that another company already owns a similar trademark that covers the same or similar products. That’s why a trademark search isn’t just about checking the USPTO’s database. It’s about doing a true deep dive into the market to see if anyone else is using the same or a confusingly similar name or logo.
A good place to start would be to search for similar names in the firearms industry as well as in any other relevant markets that could be closely related.
It’s also worth noting that trademark infringement isn’t just about exact matches. The USPTO considers phonetic similarities and even slight variations in spelling. For instance, a brand name like ‘Tytan Firearms’ might sound cool but if someone else already owns the trademark for ‘Titan Firearms,’ you could still run into trouble (especially if the specific products between the two companies are very similar). It’s something to keep in mind.
Pitfall 3 – Trademarking Functional Designs and Product Features
This pitfall often catches new firearm manufacturers off guard: trying to trademark a functional design feature on a firearm.
What’s wrong with that, exactly?
Here’s the deal: trademark law specifically is about protecting the unique identifiers of your brand (name, logo, slogan, etc.) so your brand can be distinguished from others in the same or similar industries. It’s not about protecting the functional aspects of anything your business produces.
For instance, let’s say a new firearm your company has designed features a special grip design that is intended to be more ergonomic for the user. While this might indeed be an important selling point for your product, it doesn’t necessarily make it eligible for trademark protection.
That’s because when you trademark a functional feature of a firearm, you would effectively be getting a monopoly over that feature in the market. THis is something that’s not the purpose of trademark law.
Take the example of the famous Glock “finger grooves” on their firearm grips, which first appeared on the 3rd Generation of their pistols. The shape of the grip might make the firearm more ergonomic, but those grooves are considered functional (and therefore not eligible for trademark protection).
As a result, Glock as a company cannot claim exclusive ownership of that grip design through a trademark because the grip serves a utilitarian function. If another company were to make a firearm with a similar grip design, Glock wouldn’t be able to stop them in terms of trademark enforcement. It would be a different story if Glock held a patent on the design, though.
So, how do you avoid this pitfall? It all comes down to being clear about what you’re protecting. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that a trademark protects any design features of your firearms or accessories; that’s what a patent is for. Your trademark is for your brand name, slogan, logo, and any other company identifiers.
Conclusion
Long story short, creating a trademark in the firearm industry is no walk in the park!
There are certainly more things to think about with creating a trademark for a firearms company than with companies in most other industries, but thankfully, it’s also rather simple to avoid them if you do your due diligence like we’ve had the opportunity to discuss today