Music Trade Review
Issue: 1912 Vol. 54 N. 23 - Page 7
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
TRADE-MARKS IN THE MUSIC TRADE INDUSTRY.
There Are Few Industries Where Trade-Marges Have as Great Significance as in the Music Trade
— T h e Standard Piano Known by Its Distinctive Name, Usually the Name of the Original
Maker, with Which the Reputation of the Manufactory Is Bound—Some Timely Comments
on This Subject by Waldon Fawcett, The Review's Washington Correspondent.
It would be difficult to name a trade field in the
entire industrial and commercial world where
t rede-marks have as great significance as in the
music trade. Not only is there no other field
where trade-marks mean more from consideration
of sentimental prestige or where they are of greater
benefit and value in the making of sales, but like-
wise is there no other sphere where the trade-mark
J. C. Carnes,
Chief Examiner of Trade-Marks for the United States Gov-
ernment writing an opinion in a trade-mark case.
is more universally used by practically all of the
foremost manufacturers.
Such has been the growth of the popularity of the
trade-mark as a means of identification and a
vehicle of salesmanship these past few years that
there is now no commercial field in which these
insignia and slogans of trade are not employed.
But, in many lines of trade, it is only a firm here
and there that has adopted a trade-mark. In the
musical instrument business, on the other hand,
practically every creative force in the field has a
trade-mark which, just in proportion to the extent
to which it is known to the public at large, 'is a
valuable asset of the business.
Value of the Piano Makers' Name-
Take the piano business, for example. Not only
is each standard make of instrument known not
only to its devotees, but to the entire world at large,
by its distinctive name—usually the name of the
original maker—but the very reputation of the
manufactory and its product 'is bound up in this
name. Because names are the badges of success
in the piano field, almost every manufactory has
adopted the name of its make of instrument as its
trade-mark. And a name, in even greater degree
than any other form of trade-mark, is at once a
weapon and a responsibility. It is ever present to
create prestige for the instrument that has made a
favorable impression upon an auditor, but on the
other hand the very presence of such an estab-
lished trade-mark implies a traditional merit in the
article to which it is attached. In other words the
appearance of a familiar trade-marked name on a
piano is, to those who are at all informed on the
subject, a virtual guarantee of quality.
That piano manufacturers fully appreciate the
value of an old or honored name as a weapon of
offense and defense in introducing their wares to
Examining Trade-Marks
i'or which registration is sought at the U. S. Patent Ottice.
the public is eloquently proven by the spirited legal
battles which have, from time to time, been fought
out in our courts with reference to the right to use
some well-known piano name upon which more
than one manufacturer had some claim. Such
cases usually arise only when a piano manufactur-
ing business has been sold by the founder or his
heirs, and the latter in due course decides to re-
enter the piano manufacturing field and wish to
make use of the name which is in one sense their
own. And just here, it may be noted, that whereas
the law states that any registered trade-mark may
b> sold or transferred, the statute makes the stipu-
lation that a trade-mark is assignable only in con-
nection with the good-will of the business in which
the mark is used. In other words no piano manu-
facturer can buy merely the trade-mark of a com-
petitor. He must buy the rival factory—take over
the entire business, in fact-—if he desires to secure
the privilege of marketing instruments under the
trade-mark originated by' another.
Whereas there are, ot course, more different
trade-marks in the piano and player-piano field
than in any other branch of the music trades, it
must not be supposed that the use of these "com-
mercial signatures," as they have been aptly nick-
named, is by any means confined to the piano
lines. Makers of almost all classes of musical in-
struments, from harmonicas to harps, make use
of trade-marks to greater or less extent, and out-
rivaling even the piano trade is the exploitation
Consulting References
In trademark cases at Uncle Sam's trade-mark bureau.
of trade-marks in the talking machine and phono-
graph trade.
Three of the Best Known Trade-Marks.
Indeed, it is not too much to say that three of
the best-known trade-marks in the entire world are
respectively "His Master's Voice,", owned by the
Victor Talking Machine Co.; the musical notes of
the Columbia Phonograph Co., and the familiar
portrait of the greatest inventor of the age used so
effectually and persistently in connection with the
Edison phonograph. The president of the National
Biscuit Co. stated some time since that he consid-
ered the trade-mark "Uneeda" worth at least $6,-
000,000. It is probable that a valuation of at least
twice that sum might be placed consistently on the
representation of the fox terrier that has introduced
the Victor to the world and which is introduced in
every Victor advertisement and on every Victor
product with a consistency and persistency worthy
of emulation by every manufacturer who desires to
get the full advertising value of a trade-mark.
In this age of advertising and of sales campaigns
based primarily upon quality, the importance of the
trade-mark as a factor in every market has in-
creased steadily and rapidly. Indeed, many of the
shrewdest and most progressive manufacturers in
all lines are now of the opinion that trade-marks
are far more valuable than patents. Perhaps the
best illustration of this is found in the piano field
itself, as distinguished from the player field. There
are no basic patents in piano manufacture, and such
patents as have not lapsed for the most part cover
minor features which have no important bearing
upon the popularity of the respective makes of in-
struments. But a trade-mark does not expire after
seventeen years as does a patent. Instead, it may,
by being renewed at intervals of twenty years, be
made perpetual, and it thus becomes, in a sense,
the very cornerstone of a firm's reputation—an
automatic letter of introduction that comes sub-
consciously to every new customer in the musical
field.
There Are Two Classes of Trade-Marks.
Trade-marks may be described as of two classes,
common-law trade-marks and registered trade-
marks, though, as a matter of fact, almost all the
Trade-Mark Applications.
The room in which the file is kept at the I'. S. Patent
Office.
well-known trade-marks in the musical field come
under both these designations. The common-law
trade-mark is a name, design, symbol or insignia
the right to which on the part of a firm or indi-
vidual has been established by long usage. If a
manufacturer of musical instruments has for years
bestowed his name or any specific mark or em-
blem upon the instruments of his manufacture
until this means of identification is firmly asso-
ciated in the public mind with that particular line
or product, he is considered to have established his
prior right to the use of that particular mark.
Should any unscrupulous competitor attempt to
make "capital" for his own products by appropriat-
ing the time-tried mark of his rival, the infringer
can be prosecuted on the ground of attempt at
fraud under the common law.
The registered trade-mark is, of course, no dif-
ferent from the common-law trade-mark, except
that it has been duly registered at the U. S. Patent
Office in Washington. It should require no ex-
tended argument to indicate the desirability of hav-
ing a trade-mark which has been sanctioned by
Uncle Sam and for which, in a sense, he stands
sponsor. The governmental registration often con-
stitutes the best of evidence as to original use or
prior right in a trade-mark claimed by two or
more interests. To date upward of one hundred
thousand trade-marks have been registered in this
country, and the number is growing at the rate of
hundreds a month. Incidentally, it may be noted
that almost all the well-known trade-marks in the
music trades are registered in foreign countries as
W. L. Symons,
Assistant Examiner of Trade-Marks, at the U. S. Patent
Office analyzing a trade-mark with reference as to its
eligibility for registration.
well as in the United States—for almost all na-
tions have a system of registration similar to that
of our own government. Until some half a dozen
years ago a trade-mark coul.d not be registered at
Washington unless it was being used in commerce
(Continued on page 8.)
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
TRADE-MARKS IN THE MUSIC TRADE INDUSTRY.
There Are Few Industries Where Trade-Marges Have as Great Significance as in the Music Trade
— T h e Standard Piano Known by Its Distinctive Name, Usually the Name of the Original
Maker, with Which the Reputation of the Manufactory Is Bound—Some Timely Comments
on This Subject by Waldon Fawcett, The Review's Washington Correspondent.
It would be difficult to name a trade field in the
entire industrial and commercial world where
t rede-marks have as great significance as in the
music trade. Not only is there no other field
where trade-marks mean more from consideration
of sentimental prestige or where they are of greater
benefit and value in the making of sales, but like-
wise is there no other sphere where the trade-mark
J. C. Carnes,
Chief Examiner of Trade-Marks for the United States Gov-
ernment writing an opinion in a trade-mark case.
is more universally used by practically all of the
foremost manufacturers.
Such has been the growth of the popularity of the
trade-mark as a means of identification and a
vehicle of salesmanship these past few years that
there is now no commercial field in which these
insignia and slogans of trade are not employed.
But, in many lines of trade, it is only a firm here
and there that has adopted a trade-mark. In the
musical instrument business, on the other hand,
practically every creative force in the field has a
trade-mark which, just in proportion to the extent
to which it is known to the public at large, 'is a
valuable asset of the business.
Value of the Piano Makers' Name-
Take the piano business, for example. Not only
is each standard make of instrument known not
only to its devotees, but to the entire world at large,
by its distinctive name—usually the name of the
original maker—but the very reputation of the
manufactory and its product 'is bound up in this
name. Because names are the badges of success
in the piano field, almost every manufactory has
adopted the name of its make of instrument as its
trade-mark. And a name, in even greater degree
than any other form of trade-mark, is at once a
weapon and a responsibility. It is ever present to
create prestige for the instrument that has made a
favorable impression upon an auditor, but on the
other hand the very presence of such an estab-
lished trade-mark implies a traditional merit in the
article to which it is attached. In other words the
appearance of a familiar trade-marked name on a
piano is, to those who are at all informed on the
subject, a virtual guarantee of quality.
That piano manufacturers fully appreciate the
value of an old or honored name as a weapon of
offense and defense in introducing their wares to
Examining Trade-Marks
i'or which registration is sought at the U. S. Patent Ottice.
the public is eloquently proven by the spirited legal
battles which have, from time to time, been fought
out in our courts with reference to the right to use
some well-known piano name upon which more
than one manufacturer had some claim. Such
cases usually arise only when a piano manufactur-
ing business has been sold by the founder or his
heirs, and the latter in due course decides to re-
enter the piano manufacturing field and wish to
make use of the name which is in one sense their
own. And just here, it may be noted, that whereas
the law states that any registered trade-mark may
b> sold or transferred, the statute makes the stipu-
lation that a trade-mark is assignable only in con-
nection with the good-will of the business in which
the mark is used. In other words no piano manu-
facturer can buy merely the trade-mark of a com-
petitor. He must buy the rival factory—take over
the entire business, in fact-—if he desires to secure
the privilege of marketing instruments under the
trade-mark originated by' another.
Whereas there are, ot course, more different
trade-marks in the piano and player-piano field
than in any other branch of the music trades, it
must not be supposed that the use of these "com-
mercial signatures," as they have been aptly nick-
named, is by any means confined to the piano
lines. Makers of almost all classes of musical in-
struments, from harmonicas to harps, make use
of trade-marks to greater or less extent, and out-
rivaling even the piano trade is the exploitation
Consulting References
In trademark cases at Uncle Sam's trade-mark bureau.
of trade-marks in the talking machine and phono-
graph trade.
Three of the Best Known Trade-Marks.
Indeed, it is not too much to say that three of
the best-known trade-marks in the entire world are
respectively "His Master's Voice,", owned by the
Victor Talking Machine Co.; the musical notes of
the Columbia Phonograph Co., and the familiar
portrait of the greatest inventor of the age used so
effectually and persistently in connection with the
Edison phonograph. The president of the National
Biscuit Co. stated some time since that he consid-
ered the trade-mark "Uneeda" worth at least $6,-
000,000. It is probable that a valuation of at least
twice that sum might be placed consistently on the
representation of the fox terrier that has introduced
the Victor to the world and which is introduced in
every Victor advertisement and on every Victor
product with a consistency and persistency worthy
of emulation by every manufacturer who desires to
get the full advertising value of a trade-mark.
In this age of advertising and of sales campaigns
based primarily upon quality, the importance of the
trade-mark as a factor in every market has in-
creased steadily and rapidly. Indeed, many of the
shrewdest and most progressive manufacturers in
all lines are now of the opinion that trade-marks
are far more valuable than patents. Perhaps the
best illustration of this is found in the piano field
itself, as distinguished from the player field. There
are no basic patents in piano manufacture, and such
patents as have not lapsed for the most part cover
minor features which have no important bearing
upon the popularity of the respective makes of in-
struments. But a trade-mark does not expire after
seventeen years as does a patent. Instead, it may,
by being renewed at intervals of twenty years, be
made perpetual, and it thus becomes, in a sense,
the very cornerstone of a firm's reputation—an
automatic letter of introduction that comes sub-
consciously to every new customer in the musical
field.
There Are Two Classes of Trade-Marks.
Trade-marks may be described as of two classes,
common-law trade-marks and registered trade-
marks, though, as a matter of fact, almost all the
Trade-Mark Applications.
The room in which the file is kept at the I'. S. Patent
Office.
well-known trade-marks in the musical field come
under both these designations. The common-law
trade-mark is a name, design, symbol or insignia
the right to which on the part of a firm or indi-
vidual has been established by long usage. If a
manufacturer of musical instruments has for years
bestowed his name or any specific mark or em-
blem upon the instruments of his manufacture
until this means of identification is firmly asso-
ciated in the public mind with that particular line
or product, he is considered to have established his
prior right to the use of that particular mark.
Should any unscrupulous competitor attempt to
make "capital" for his own products by appropriat-
ing the time-tried mark of his rival, the infringer
can be prosecuted on the ground of attempt at
fraud under the common law.
The registered trade-mark is, of course, no dif-
ferent from the common-law trade-mark, except
that it has been duly registered at the U. S. Patent
Office in Washington. It should require no ex-
tended argument to indicate the desirability of hav-
ing a trade-mark which has been sanctioned by
Uncle Sam and for which, in a sense, he stands
sponsor. The governmental registration often con-
stitutes the best of evidence as to original use or
prior right in a trade-mark claimed by two or
more interests. To date upward of one hundred
thousand trade-marks have been registered in this
country, and the number is growing at the rate of
hundreds a month. Incidentally, it may be noted
that almost all the well-known trade-marks in the
music trades are registered in foreign countries as
W. L. Symons,
Assistant Examiner of Trade-Marks, at the U. S. Patent
Office analyzing a trade-mark with reference as to its
eligibility for registration.
well as in the United States—for almost all na-
tions have a system of registration similar to that
of our own government. Until some half a dozen
years ago a trade-mark coul.d not be registered at
Washington unless it was being used in commerce
(Continued on page 8.)
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