In this regard, trade secret protection is very similar to copyrights and very different from patents. Independent creators infringe patents but neither copyrights nor trade secrets. This alone goes far toward justifying, e.g., the relatively brief lifetime of patents and the fact that a patentee is under very stringent novelty requirements. If independently created, it will be the second party's trade secret too. In this regard, trade secret protection is very similar to copyrights and very different from patents.
Independent creators infringe patents but neither copyrights nor trade secrets.
This alone goes far toward justifying, e.g., the relatively brief lifetime of patents and the fact that a patentee is under very stringent novelty requirements. Federal registration requires not only that marks be used but also that their use affect interstate or foreign, rather than only intrastate, commerce. Moreover, at least until recently, the PTO has tended to interpret this requirement quite strictly. However, you must distinguish trademarks and registrations . Trademarks do not expire if used.