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Basics Track: Franchisor's Intellectual Property and How to Protect It

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Basics Track: Franchisor's Intellectual Property and How to Protect It International Franchise Association 52nd Annual Legal Symposium May 5-7, 2019 Washington, DC Basics Track: Franchisor’s Intellectual Property and How to Protect It Christopher Kelly Partner, Wiley Rein LLP Washington, D.C. Vincent Frantz Attorney, Cheng Cohen LLC Chicago, Illinois 1 Table of Contents I. The Four Primary Types of Intellectual Property ....................................................... 4 A. Trademarks ........................................................................................................... 4 1. Selecting a Protectable Mark ............................................................................. 5 2. Common Law Trademarks ................................................................................. 7 3. Domestic Trademark Registration ...................................................................... 8 4. International Trademark Protection .................................................................. 11 5. Proper Use of Trademarks ............................................................................... 12 6. Enforcement of Rights/Trademark Infringement ............................................... 13 B. Trade Secrets ...................................................................................................... 14 1. Elements of a Trade Secret.............................................................................. 15 2. Misappropriation of Trade Secrets ................................................................... 16 3. Federal Protection for Trade Secrets ............................................................... 17 4. International Protection for Trade Secrets ........................................................ 17 C. Copyrights ........................................................................................................... 18 1. “Common Law” Copyrights and Works for Hire ................................................ 19 2. Copyright Infringement ..................................................................................... 20 3. International Protection for Copyrights ............................................................. 21 4. International Protection for Patents .................................................................. 25 II. Franchising and Intellectual Property ...................................................................... 25 A. Proper Ownership of Intellectual Property ........................................................... 26 1. Separate Entity for Intellectual Property ........................................................... 26 2. “Intent-to-Use” Trademark Applications ........................................................... 26 3. Defining Ownership in the Franchise Agreement ............................................. 26 B. Protecting IP in the Franchise System Prior to Enforcement ............................... 27 1. Trademark Registration .................................................................................... 28 2. Key Provisions in Franchise Agreement .......................................................... 28 C. The Franchise Disclosure Document................................................................... 31 1. Item 13 - Trademarks ....................................................................................... 31 2. Item 14 – Patents, Copyrights and Proprietary Information .............................. 31 3. Item 15 – Obligation to Participate in the Actual Operation of the Franchise Businesses; and Item 16 – Restrictions on What the Franchisee May Sell ............ 32 4. Item 18 – Public Figures .................................................................................. 32 D. Policing the System ............................................................................................. 32 2 III. Enforcement Options and Implications ................................................................ 33 A. Against Franchisees ............................................................................................ 33 1. Cease and Desist Letter ................................................................................... 34 2. Injunctive Relief ................................................................................................ 34 3. Damages .......................................................................................................... 36 4. Disclosure Implications .................................................................................... 37 B. Against Third-Parties ........................................................................................... 37 C. IP Protection in the Internet Age .......................................................................... 38 3 I. The Four Primary Types of Intellectual Property Intellectual property is intangible property. It differs from other types of property because it is a product of the human mind and imagination. Intellectual property encompasses many forms, including musical, literary and artistic works, inventions, names, designs, proprietary or confidential business information and branding. The nature and scope of what constitutes intellectual property ensures that most, if not all, businesses rely on some form of it. This certainly is the case in franchising. There are four primary types of intellectual property: (i) trademarks, (ii) trade secrets, (iii) copyrights, and (iv) patents. A. Trademarks Trademarks typically are at the core of any franchise system because they identify and distinguish a brand and the products and services offered by a brand from the products and services offered by others. In fact, trademarks are such a cornerstone of a franchise system, that the Federal Trade Commission’s (“FTC”) definition of “franchise” specifically includes the licensing of a franchisor’s trademark as an essential element.1 A trademark is any word, name, symbol, design, slogan, packaging, sound, or smell (or some combination of these elements) that identifies a product or service as coming from a single source.2 Trademarks identify and distinguish a business’s goods and services to the public.3 Trade dress is a type of trademark and refers to packaging or overall image or presentation of a product or business. It includes the non-functional size, shape, color, product design (or some combination of these) that distinguishes one source from another. The concept of trade dress has expanded through the years and is used with increasing frequency to protect a business’s “complete image” or “overall appearance” – i.e., its “look and feel.” Trade dress can be particularly relevant to franchise systems and has been used, for example, to protect the distinctive decors of restaurants and other businesses. A trade name is the official name under which a business operates. It may be a corporate name, the name of a limited partnership, the names of partners in a general partnership, or a different name altogether.4 Trade names generally are used in connection with required business filings with state and other government agencies, UCC 1 16 C.F.R. § 436.1(h)(1). 2 See 15 U.S.C. § 1127. 3 Technically, trademarks identify products, and service marks identify services. But the general term “trademark” or “mark” is commonly used to refer to both trademarks and service marks. 4 If the trade name is different from the formal name of the business, most states require filing as an assumed name or fictitious business name in the relevant state or county. 4 filings and the like. Trade names do not offer the same rights as trademarks and are ineligible for registration under the federal trademark registration scheme – unless they also are used as trademarks. A franchise system’s trademarks frequently are its most valuable asset. Because of the importance of trademarks to businesses, consumers and commerce generally, federal and state governments provide systems for registering and protecting trademark rights. Businesses invest considerable resources developing their brands so that consumers recognize and distinguish their products and services from others. Federal and state trademark protections are intended to stop infringement of the rights of trademark owners and their authorized users (such as franchisees) and to serve the public interest by preventing consumer confusion. 1. Selecting a Protectable Mark Trademarks run the gamut from strong to weak. At the strong end of the spectrum are inherently distinctive marks – marks that are coined or invented and have no meaning other than trademark significance. These marks generally receive the most protection. (A common example of a coined mark is EXXON.) Also on the strong end of the trademark scale are arbitrary marks – words with a recognized meaning, but not in the context in which they are used as trademarks. (An example of an arbitrary mark is APPLE for computer products.) Still on the strong side of the trademark scale – but below coined and arbitrary marks – are suggestive marks. Suggestive marks offer a hint or idea about the goods or services with which they are used but fall short of describing a characteristic or feature of the goods or services. Trademarks are suggestive if they require imagination or thought to connect them to the products or services with which they are used. Suggestive marks generally receive reasonably strong protection. (An example of a suggestive mark is NETFLIX.) At the weak end of the trademark scale are descriptive and, lastly, generic marks. Descriptive marks immediately
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