Yes. A sound can be registered as a trademark in Canada if it meets the applicable requirements. A short jingle, chime or sonic logo can identify the source of particular goods or services. The key question is how listeners understand the sound in that setting.
What makes a sonic logo a trademark?
Imagine a podcast producer that opens each episode and ends each ad with the same two-second sequence of three notes and a soft chime. Used consistently, the sequence could become a cue that identifies that producer. The same recording used once as background music tells you much less about whether listeners associate it with the producer.
Decide which sound you want to claim and which goods or services it identifies. If different ads use different versions, keep a clean recording of the exact version you treat as your brand cue.
What goes into a Canadian sound-mark application?
- State that the mark consists wholly or partly of sound, as required by paragraph 31(e) of the Trademarks Regulations.
- Provide a clear, concise description of what listeners hear. The order of the sounds, instruments, notes or timing can help where they are relevant.
- Submit an electronic recording of the claimed sound. Remove background material and avoid looping or repeating the clip to fill time.
- Identify the goods and services covered by the application. A visual representation of the sound is optional under CIPO’s current guidance.
See CIPO’s practice notice on non-traditional trademarks for the sound-specific filing requirements.
When can CIPO ask for evidence?
Under section 32 of the Trademarks Act, the Registrar may require evidence that a mark consisting exclusively or primarily of a sound was distinctive at the filing date. Keep dated examples of the sound in Canadian advertising or product use, along with records of reach and any evidence that listeners recognize it as a brand cue. The amount and type of evidence depend on the facts.
Before you commission or file a jingle
- Choose a version you can use consistently and keep an unlooped master recording.
- Check who owns the composition and recording and what your agreement permits you to do with them. A sound-mark filing addresses the sound’s use as a brand identifier. Copyright and licensing address separate rights.
- Collect examples showing when and where the sound is presented to Canadian customers.
Soundmark Law can help assess the proposed sound and scope the next step. A sound-mark review is scoped separately. See trademark and copyright services and the Canadian filing fee estimator for government fees.
General information about Canadian trademark law.
