Registering a trademark for a company name is pretty straightforward. Many businesses can file an application online in less than 90 minutes, without a lawyer’s help.

The simplest way to register is on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s Web site, www.uspto.gov. Before completing the online registration form, check the site’s Trademark Electronic Search System (”TESS”) database to make sure another company hasn’t already registered an identical or similar mark for the same categories of goods or services you offer.

U.S. trademark protection is granted to the first entity to use a particular mark in the geographic area where it operates, regardless of whether the mark is registered. But if your chosen mark is already registered by another company — even if you used it first — your registration will be rejected and you’ll probably want a lawyer to help you proceed.

Online trademark registration costs between $275 and $325 and requires information such as the categories of goods and services for which the mark will be used, date of the mark’s first use in commerce and whether there’s a design component to the mark you’re seeking.

Internet businesses registering their names should generally refrain from registering their Web extension, such as .com or .net, with their name, unless they’re planning to register the mark both with and without. Getting a trademark without the domain extension will help prevent other businesses from registering the same name by just adding a different extension. Don’t designate a specific design of your trademark in order to get the broadest protection.

Source:  Wall Street Journal

slideshow

Is online gaming causing college dropouts?

Officials at the University of Minnesota-Duluth sure think so.  

It’s easy to see how this endless role-playing fantasy world envelops players, with battles to be fought and treasures to be collected at every turn. But the effects of such infatuation have led to problems for many, such as college students who skip class and forget to study as they lose themselves in virtual worlds.

Academic counselors brought the problem to the attention of UMD Chancellor Kathryn A. Martin in recent months when they discovered students with academic difficulties were spending enormous amounts of time playing computer games. The issue was addressed more directly with UMD freshmen and resident advisers this year.

Those concerns are echoed by FCC Commissioner Deborah Taylor Tate:

With the explosion of educational resources available online, one might think parents would be 100% pleased with the internet’s role in their children’s lives. But surveys show just the opposite: a late 2006 survey that showed 59% of parents think the internet has been a totally positive influence in their children’s lives-- down from 67% in 2004.
 
You might find it alarming that one of the top reasons for college drop-outs in the U.S. is online gaming addiction - such as World of Warcraft - which is played by 11 million individuals worldwide.

Frankly, I'm not surprised that this is becoming a problem.  I remember playing Zork when I was in Jr. High School, and wasting hours and hours on a text-based adventure. There's a reason W.O.W.'s predecessor, Everquest, was known as "Evercrack.

h/t - gamepolitics.com

"We hadn't planned ahead for our tax bill," says Julie Stewart. As the pair scrambled to find ways to pay the IRS nearly $20,000, they were forced to put all nonessential expenditures on hold and rely on their personal credit cards to help pay company expenses.Their sacrifices worked, and their $2-million company is back on track.

But today Julie, 31, and Tom, 46, don't make any key decisions, from capital investments to sizing their personal paychecks, without taking taxes into account.This year the Stewarts are introducing a new product line they hope to sell to mainstream gift stores, and once again they're hoping for high-speed growth. But this time they're planning for it, too.

Every month, they work with financial adviser Donna M. McGovern, president of Custom Business Results Inc., based in Huntington Beach, Calif. Their goal: to learn the most tax-savvy ways to extend their product lines, expand their customer base, and increase their annual sales by 30%.

From McGovern's perspective, there's one tax deduction that's an absolute slam dunk for any small-business owner: the right, under Section 179 of the tax code, to expense up to $24,000 in equipment purchases. "Bingo!" McGovern says. "You're taking expenditures that your company would otherwise need to capitalize -- meaning, write off over five or seven years -- and getting an immediate tax deduction." Depending on your corporate tax bracket, that could amount to a tax break of anywhere from $3,600 to $9,360.

Source:  Jill Andresky Fraser, Inc.com

The bailout for the Big Three automakers cleared a hurdle yesterday, but the toughest part is yet to come. The House voted in favor of the bill, but Senate Republicans are still opposed. This could drag into the weekend before it comes to resolution.

2009 could see continuing bad news for the housing market. Some analysts say a "foreclosure storm" could hit the country, forcing as many as 1 million homeowners from their property. Rising unemployment and the end of programs that put a moratorium on foreclosure could push filings above the already record levels the U.S. is seeing.

Vegas is also getting hammered by the financial crisis. Casino reveunes plunged nearly 25% in October. Consumers are cutting back on discretionary spending, which is leaving them less money to travel and gamble in Nevada.

1946: UNICEF (the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund) was established.

1997: More than 150 countries agreed at a global warming conference in Kyoto, Japan, to take steps to control the greenhouse gas emissions.

2002: A congressional report found that intelligence agencies before Sept. 11, 2001, were poorly organized, poorly equipped and slow to pursue clues that might have prevented that day's terrorist attacks.

Almost all entrepreneurs go through the same rite of passage, facing up to the decision to leave the garage/basement/living room/incubator. And the soft real estate market these days makes the prospect of leasing their own four walls even more enticing.

In the fourth quarter of 2003, according to stats compiled by real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield, asking prices for rent were 15% to 20% lower than the most recent peak in the fourth quarter of 2000. But moving into an office is a huge step, and it's important to think carefully before taking it. After labor costs, office rent tends to be the largest expense most business owners face. Making the move before you're truly ready can cost you plenty--not only in cash, but in headaches, as well.

The question is, How do you know it's time to make the leap? And what type of space is best for you?The most important thing, says S. Thomas Emerson, director of the Donald H. Jones Center for Entrepreneurship at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, is not to get caught up in flights of entrepreneurial fancy. New entrepreneurs, he finds, tend to imagine they're running a more advanced company than they really are. "They lease space for the company that they wish they had," he says, "instead of for the company they do have."He suggests staying put in less expensive space as long as possible.

It's also important to make sure your move is necessary for your business and not for your ego. In the case of eSpin, a lack of physical space and a lack of client confidence pointed clearly to the need to move. For Cynthia McKay, CEO of Le Gourmet Gift Basket in Castle Rock, Colo., a combination of factors propelled her to move her business from her home into its own space: her barking puppy drowning out phone calls, employment agencies refusing to work with her, and security concerns about inviting first-time clients into her home.

Source:  Allison Stein Wellner, Inc.com

The proposed bailout for the Big Three automakers is getting closer to approval in Washington, D.C., and details of the plan are beginning to surface. The plan would give the federal government a large ownership stake, and the companies would undergo a restructuring similar to bankruptcy proceedings.  However, the government would be in charge, not a judge.  Ford may not think this is a good idea, and annouced it would not be seeking a bridge loan from the government, saying they are in a healthier position than the other two automakers.

The Utah Supreme Court is considering whether or not they'll hear arguments in a case brought by investors in XanGo.  The parties are asking the high court to decide whether a lower court judge erred when he dismissed the lawsuit against the company's founders.  The original case alleged the founders of XanGo were paid high salaries and company assets were used to cover personal expenditures.  The suit further alleges shen the original investors complained, the founding members of XanGo took loans from the company to pay off the original investors.

Tribune media compnany filed for bankruptcy protection yesterday.  Tribune owns the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Cubs baseball team.  Citing $13 billion in debt, the company announce it would cease all severance payments for recently laid off employees, as well as continue looking for a buyer for the Chicago Cubs.  BusinessWeek has an in-depth look at how Tribune got to this point under the leadership of Sam Zell.

1854: The poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade" by Alfred, Lord Tennyson, was published in England.

1975: President Gerald R. Ford signed a $2.3 billion seasonal loan authorization to prevent New York City from having to default.

2002: United Airlines filed the biggest bankruptcy in aviation history after losing $4 billion in the previous two years.

Source:  New York Times

It's beginning to look a lot like...government help for struggling homeowners?  President-elect Barack Obama says he will come up with a plan to help struggling homeowners avoid foreclosure if President Bush does not act by the time he leaves office on January 20th.  Mr. Obama says the economic recovery will be long and hard, but he wants a plan that is "equal to the task."

It looks like GM and Chrysler will get a short-term infusion of cash from Congress so they can avoid going under.  But, Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut, wants Chris Waggoner, the head of GM, ousted.  In fact, whatever aid comes from Congress will include strict oversight including limits on executive pay and Congressional approval for any transaction worth more than $25 billion

 The head of Merril Lynch, John Thayne, is suggesting to the board of that company that he get a bonus this year of $10 million, despite the fact that the company lost nearly $12 billion this year and is about to be acquired by Bank of America.  The board is reportedly "disinclined" to give out bonuses thie year.  Thayne argues that he made moves that kept those monumental losses from becoming larger.

Believe it or not, but recycling is no longer a profitable businss.  Demand for recycled materials has bottomed out, and trash that normally would be made into other items is once again heading to the landfills.  In fact, some cities are suspending their recycling programs because it's cheaper to junk the material than re-use it.

1886: The American Federation of Labor was founded in Columbus, Ohio.

1980: Rock musician John Lennon was shot to death outside his New York City apartment building by Mark David Chapman. The former Beatle was 40.

1993: President Bill Clinton signed into law the North American Free Trade Agreement.