Unsolicited Trademark Mailings: A Warning from INTA
When TradeMark Express started preparing and submitting Federal trademark applications for clients, we heard almost immediately about official-looking mailings they received requesting more money to either monitor their mark or to be listed in a "trademark registration directory." These unsolicited offers are in no way affiliated with the USPTO and therefore, do NOT require a response. The appearance of these mailings is the first foot in the door of confusion. They often come on very official looking stationery; an invoice that looks very governmental in form and/or appears to be affiliated with a governmental entity.
Take a look at one of the examples INTA provides on their web site from the United States Trademark Protection Agency (USTPA – see what they did there?): PDF format - USTPA Example Mailing.
The only mailings any trademark owner should most definitely respond to are going to be those directly from the US Patent & Trademark Office. Also, any official USPTO email is going to come from addresses ending in uspto.gov
If you've received a mailing you're not sure about, please contact any of our offices for guidance.
Read the International Trademark Association's (INTA) full article here. A listing they identified of some of the companies who send out unsolicited mailings is also provided within the article.
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