Slogans, Colours, Sounds and Shapes as Trademarks in Türkiye

Turkish law defines registrable signs broadly: words including personal names, figures, colours, letters, numerals, sounds, and the shape of goods or their packaging. Two conditions apply — the sign must distinguish one undertaking’s goods and services from another’s, and it must be capable of being represented on the register clearly and precisely.

Slogans

Slogans are registrable, but purely laudatory or promotional phrases are not distinctive. Wordplay, unexpected construction, or long association with the brand through campaigns improve the prospects — often through acquired distinctiveness supported by advertising records.

Colours

A single colour can be registered but faces a high threshold, because colours are finite and must remain available to competitors. Applications should specify an internationally recognised colour code and evidence that the market associates the colour with the brand. Combinations fare better where a fixed arrangement and proportions are shown.

Sounds

Sounds are expressly listed and represented by filing a recording. Functional sounds that are ordinary in the sector do not indicate origin and are refused.

Shapes of goods and packaging

Shapes are registrable, subject to an important limit: shapes resulting from the nature of the goods, necessary to obtain a technical result, or giving substantial value to the goods cannot be registered — preventing indefinite trademark protection from displacing time-limited patent and design rights.

Motion marks and holograms can qualify where representation requirements are met. Scent and taste marks remain unregistrable in practice because they cannot yet be represented clearly and precisely.

See our article on design protection — for most products the right answer combines both.

Talk to us about a layered portfolio.

General information only, not legal advice.