With more than 200 million Amazon Prime Members worldwide, Amazon is an incredible way to build a business and earn income. However, due to widespread trademark infringers, product counterfeiters, listing hijackers, and other dubious individuals lurking on the Amazon platform, there is a heightened need to protect your Amazon online seller storefront.
The Amazon Brand Registry program is a service offered by Amazon that allows manufacturers, brand owners,and private label sellers to register their trademarks and other intellectual property with Amazon. Amazon’s Brand Registry registration helps its members protect their brands from unauthorized sellers and counterfeit products on the Amazon marketplace. Once a brand is registered, the brand owner can access various tools and services provided by Amazon, such as an automated reporting system for infringing products, enhanced product detail pages, and the ability to create and manage their own branded storefront on Amazon. Overall, the Amazon Brand Registry program helps to increase the visibility and credibility of registered brands on the Amazon platform, which can lead to increased sales and customer loyalty. Enrolling in Amazon Brand Registry unlocks a suite of tools designed to help brand owners build and protect their brands and create a better experience for their customers. To enroll, US Amazon online sellers must have an active pending or registered federal trademark issued by the United States Patent & Trademark Office (USPTO). The active pending or registered federal trademark must match the brand name on the Amazon Brand Registry application.
Amazon Brand Registry Features & Benefits
By enrolling in Amazon Brand Registry, brand owners will have access to a suite of innovative tools to help protect their brands and products. The following is a brief summary of what Amazon online sellers may want to know about Amazon’s Brand Registry features and benefits.
Access to Amazon Counterfeit Crimes Unit: Amazon’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit’s mission is to pursue counterfeiters and infringers. Amazon will work with Brand Registry members and law enforcement in certain situations to bring bad actors to justice, including partnering with brand owners as co-plaintiffs in civil litigation.
Access to Project Zero: Amazon Project Zero uses the power of Amazon technology combined with brand insights to detect and remove counterfeit listings and products. Eligible Brand Registry members may use Amazon’s Project Zero self-service counterfeit removal tool to remove counterfeit listings. A counterfeit is an unlawful, unauthorized reproduction of a registered trademark in connection with the sale of a product. Counterfeiting requires the use of a registered trademark on the product, packaging, or the product detail page to falsely imply that the product is genuine.
Transparency: Amazon’s Transparency uses secure, unique, alphanumeric, non-sequential codes on product packaging to ensure only authentic products are shipped to customers. Amazon’s Transparency codes allow customers to scan the unique Transparency codes to confirm authenticity. Products that fail Transparency authentication checks are investigated for potential counterfeits. Transparency also allows Brand Registry members to gain additional insights by accessing Brand Reports to confirm Transparency’s effectiveness in protecting enrolled products and review key product data points.
A+ Content: Brand Registry members may use A+ Content to elevate brand and product features on a brand owner’s product detail pages. With A+ Content, brand owners can quickly test which product listings that will produce the best results and increase sales, saving a significant amount of time trying to guess which product listings (or product storytelling) will work best in the Amazon marketplace.Sponsored Brands: Sponsored Brands can help Brand Registry members showcase their brands and increase sales by creating ads that appear in relevant Amazon shopping results. Not only does Sponsored Brands help brand owners increase sales, but it also helps Amazon shoppers discover brands and products that they may easily overlook. With clickable logos, lifestyle imagery, or product categories, Amazon shoppers will be automatically directed to the brand owner’s product page.
Enrollment in Amazon Brand Registry
The following is a step-by-step explanation of the process of enrolling in Amazon’s Brand Registry program as a pending or registered trademark owner:
Create an Amazon Seller Account: To enroll in the Amazon Brand Registry, you must have an active Amazon seller account. If you don’t have one, you can create one by providing your personal and business information.
Review Amazon’s Brand Registry Guidelines: Before enrolling in the Brand Registry, you must review Amazon’s Brand Registry guidelines to ensure that you understand the program’s rules and requirements.
Obtain a Trademark Registration: To enroll in the Brand Registry, you must have a active pending trademark application with an assigned serial number or an active trademark registration with an assigned registration number issued by the USPTO. Amazon will verify your trademark serial number or trademark registration number before you can enroll.
Gather Required Information: Before enrolling in the Brand Registry, you will need to gather the following information: (1) Your brand name, (2) Your trademark serial or registration number, (3) A list of product categories for the products you will be selling under your brand, (4) A clear image of your brand design mark (logo), word mark, or design plus word mark, (5) Contact information for your brand, and (6) Information about your website and any other sales channels where your brand’s products are sold.
Submit an Application: Once you have reviewed the Brand Registry guidelines and gathered the required information, you can submit an application to enroll in the program. The application can be submitted through the Amazon Brand Registry website.
Provide Proof of Active Trademark Application or Registration: Amazon will ask for proof of your active trademark application or registration, such as a copy of your trademark certificate or a trademark application serial number or trademark registration number. If you are not the owner of the trademark application or trademark registration, you will also need to provide evidence that you have the right to use the trademark, such as a license agreement or a statement from the trademark owner.
Wait for Approval: After you have submitted your application, Amazon will review it and verify your trademark registration. This process can take several days or up to two weeks. If your application is approved, you will receive an email from Amazon with instructions on how to use the Brand Registry.
Add Product Information: Once your trademark application has been approved, you can start adding product information to the Brand Registry. This includes adding product titles, descriptions, images, and other information about your products.
Monitor your Trademark: Once you are enrolled in the Brand Registry, it is important to regularly monitor Amazon for any unauthorized use of your trademark. If you find any infringing listings, you can report them to Amazon using the Brand Registry’s reporting tools.
Keep your Trademark Registration Up-To-Date: It is important to keep your trademark registration up-to-date and to renew it when necessary. If your trademark registration expires or is cancelled, Amazon may remove your enrollment in the Brand Registry.
Note: This is a general overview of the enrollment process for Amazon’s Brand Registry program and may be subject to change. For more detailed information and the most up-to-date information, it is recommended to check Amazon’s Brand Registry website.
Should I Hire A Trademark Attorney?
Yes, it is highly recommended. Our experienced trademark attorneys can provide valuable guidance and support throughout the trademark registration process, from conducting a comprehensive trademark search to determine the availability of the trademark, to preparing and filing the trademark application, to responding to any objections or challenges that may arise during the review process, and can represent you in any legal disputes or trademark opposition proceedings.
Furthermore, our trademark attorneys can help you to navigate the complex and sometimes confusing legal requirements for trademark registration, and can help you to ensure that your application is complete and meets all of the necessary legal requirements. We can also help you to properly maintain your trademark registration, which is an ongoing process that requires ongoing renewals, monitoring and enforcement.
In short, engaging our trademark attorneys can help you to ensure that your trademark application is properly prepared, that it meets all of the legal requirements, and that you receive the full benefits of trademark protection. While it may cost more upfront to engage us, it can often save you time and money in the long run because we can help you avoid costly mistakes and ensuring that your trademark application is successful.
If you are a business owner seeking to register a federal trademark, or you are an online retail seller launching a store on Amazon, Walmart, eBay, Etsy or other online e-commerce platform, our trademark attorneys can help. Please give us a call or contact us online by clicking the contact button and completing the form. Our trademark attorneys will respond to all inquiries within one business day.
