Untwist the term Certification Mark

Certification Mark is used to show that goods or services in respect of which the mark is used have been certified by an expert with respect to certain things such as origin, mode of manufacturing, product quality and so on. In simple term, when it is applied to product or service then it acts like an assurance that product or services passes certain criteria to be eligible to enter into the market.

The owner of the Certification Trademark or certifying authority himself does not carry on any trade in goods and service rather it certifies the goods in respect of origin, material, accuracy and so on.

One of the major differences between Trademark and certification mark is that Trademark helps to distinguish the goods or services from competitor's goods or services, whereas certification mark indicates the authenticity of products or services with respect to different parameters to ensure quality.

Certification mark is like a symbol which says to consumer that NOW! You can buy.

Registration Criteria of Certification Mark:

While granting approval in respect of Trademark registrar judges the Trademark on the basis of distinctiveness principle. But it is not the case in case of registering Certification mark.

For example, if Woolmark Company would have registered the Woolmark as a Trademark for woollen clothes then it was not possible to get registration because it is a just description of the product and generic term. But, as we all aware the word Woolmarks is the certification mark owned by Woolmark Company which denotes that the products on which it applies, are made from 100% good quality wool and has passed the stringent specification as prescribed by the Woolmark Company.

Example of Certification Mark:

• Woolmark: used for woollen clothes this denotes that the products are made from 100% good quality wool.

• Agmark: used for agriculture products to ensures that the products conform to a set of standards approved by the Directorate of Marketing and Inspection.

• ISI Mark: used for industrial products to ensure that product adhere to the set of standards laid down by the BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards).

• BIS Hallmark: used for jewellery.

• ISO certification: ISO certification a popular tool to get your quality management system acknowledged.

Author: Dushyant Sharma

Hey there, I'm Dushyant Sharma. With the extensive knowledge I've gained in past 8 years, I have been creating content on various subjects such as banking, insurance, telecom, and all the important registration and licensing processes for various companies. I'm here to help everyone with my expertise in these areas through my articles.