a search that is routinely done before filing a trademark application in order to determine if the proposed trademark is similar to any existing registered trademarks
a simple process of a computer going through a database of trademarked words to see if any of the words match
a study of the federal trademark registration database for marks which would preclude registration due to a likelihood of confusion
An investigation to discover potential conflicts between a proposed trademark or service mark and any marks already in use in the marketplace. Preferably done before a proposed mark is used, a trademark search reduces the possibility of inadvertently infringing a mark belonging to another. Businesses can conduct trademark searches themselves, either manually in a Patent and Trademark Depository library, through a computer in one of the online trademark databases (for a fee) or by hiring a search firm to do the search for them.