What do you get when two telecommunications companies, an electric company involved in several industries, three software and tech companies, a grocery store chain, and two banks all walk into a bar? That bar is currently worth a whole lot of money.
This joke was to gather these symbolic figureheads and titans of their industry all on one list, the list of top 10 most valuable trademarks as of 2020 (you can find this list on UpCounsel.com)
Whether or not these companies are too big or have too much of a hold on their industry is not the question at hand; the focus of this article is the value of their trademarks.
Trademark value is a common topic upon Eden Law’s website but highlighting actual companies’ trademark value is a more tangible illustration of just how much a brand like IBM or Apple is worth.
The costs to file a trademark with a smaller law firm like Eden Law amounts to about $2500 for the whole process, while this list puts the value of trademarks like Google’s at $44.3 billion. Lawyers aren’t known for their math skills but that number is indicative of a large return on investment.
This list including AT&T, Microsoft, Wells Fargo, and other notable companies has a total value on their trademarks alone at around $338 billion. Traditionally goodwill is part of an evaluation when a company is being acquired.
Investing in intellectual property, specifically trademarks, is a multiple pronged investment process. The legal aspect, the marketing aspect, and the business aspect are its primary three parts.
The legal aspect might not sound glamorous but as stressed on our social media and various articles, we at Eden Law consider it a priority for your business to build and protect your brand for your benefit.
However, the focus on the building of these marks has brought each and every one of these companies from small beginnings to the globally known names they hold today. Two small time employees named Henry Wells and William Fargo did not know right away that they were going to be the names in yellow and red behind the financial powerhouse that exists today.
Steps to be taken to start the process:
- Establish a protectable trademark (or marks)
- Look around for legal help to evaluate the strength of your trademark
- Get your trademark application filed and secure your brand
Contact Eden Law today and specifically look at our branding package and see how much value you can add to your business as these other brand titans have.
Written by Christian R. Dudley
