Table of Contents
- What Is Amazon Brand Registry?
- Step 1: Eligibility — What You Need to Enroll
- Step 2: Verification Process
- Step 3: Listing Control — What Changes?
- Step 4: Intellectual Property Protection Tools
- What Brand Registry Does NOT Do
- How Brand Registry Helps with Counterfeits
- Brand Registry and the Buy Box
- Brand Gating: Is It Automatic?
- The Bigger Picture: Where Brand Registry Fits
- Common Mistakes Brands Make
What Is Amazon Brand Registry?
Amazon Brand Registry is a program that allows verified trademark owners to gain enhanced control over their product listings and intellectual property on Amazon.
Once approved, brands receive:
- Greater control over listing content
- Access to intellectual property reporting tools
- Brand protection dashboards
- Enhanced search and monitoring capabilities
- Access to programs like Transparency and Project Zero (by invitation)
It is designed to protect brand names, logos, and product content from misuse.
But it is not automatic enforcement. It is a toolkit. Lear the difference between Amazon Brand Registry and Amazon Transparency, and which do you need.
Step 1: Eligibility — What You Need to Enroll
To qualify for Brand Registry, you must have:
- An active registered trademark (word mark or image mark)
- Issued by an accepted trademark office (USPTO, EUIPO, etc.)
- A trademark that matches your brand name on product packaging
- An Amazon Seller or Vendor account
Amazon verifies that:
- The trademark is active
- The applicant is the rights owner or authorized agent
- The brand name matches the trademark
Pending trademarks in some regions may qualify, but registered marks are the standard.
Without a registered trademark, you cannot enroll.
Step 2: Verification Process
After submitting your application, Amazon sends a verification code directly to the contact listed in the trademark registry (not to the person applying).
This prevents unauthorized parties from enrolling brands they do not own.
Once verified, the brand gains access to the Brand Registry dashboard within Seller Central.
Step 3: Listing Control — What Changes?
Before Brand Registry, Amazon listings are essentially open marketplaces. Any seller can:
- Contribute content changes
- Add images
- Modify titles or bullet points
- Attach to listings
Once enrolled in Brand Registry, Amazon gives your brand “priority control” over listing content.
This means:
- Your submitted content overrides other seller contributions
- Unauthorized edits are reduced
- You can report inaccurate content more efficiently
However, it’s important to understand:
Brand Registry improves content control — it does not automatically remove sellers from your listings.
Step 4: Intellectual Property Protection Tools
The most powerful part of Brand Registry is access to Amazon’s IP reporting tools.
Through the Brand Registry portal, you can:
- File trademark infringement complaints
- Report counterfeit products
- Report copyright violations
- Report inaccurate product representations
These reports are reviewed through Amazon’s internal legal channels.
Important: Accuracy Matters
You must have legitimate grounds for filing complaints.
Filing false trademark or counterfeit claims can:
- Lead to counter-notifications
- Trigger seller legal pushback
- Put your account at risk
- Create real legal exposure
Brand Registry is powerful — but it must be used carefully and truthfully.
What Brand Registry Does NOT Do
Many brands assume Brand Registry will automatically:
- Remove unauthorized sellers
- Enforce MAP pricing
- Stop grey market activity
- Guarantee Buy Box ownership
- Block all third-party sellers
- Remove hijackers
It does none of these automatically.
Brand Registry protects intellectual property and listing control. It does not regulate distribution strategy.
Unauthorized sellers can still sell authentic products under the First Sale Doctrine unless there is a legitimate IP violation or material difference.
This is where many brands become frustrated.
Brand Registry is one tool in a larger brand protection system — not a complete solution on its own.
How Brand Registry Helps with Counterfeits
Brand Registry is extremely effective when dealing with counterfeit products.
If a seller is offering:
- Fake products
- Products materially different from authentic inventory
- Misleading packaging
- Unauthorized use of logos
You can:
- Conduct a test buy
- Document evidence
- Submit photos through Brand Registry
- File a trademark infringement complaint
In most legitimate counterfeit cases, Amazon acts quickly.
Repeated successful complaints can sometimes qualify brands for programs like Project Zero, which allows self-service counterfeit removal.
But again — accuracy and proof are critical.
Brand Registry and the Buy Box
Brand Registry alone does not guarantee Buy Box control.
The Buy Box is driven primarily by:
- Price
- Seller performance metrics
- Fulfillment method
- Inventory availability
- Landed price thresholds
However, Brand Registry indirectly supports Buy Box performance by:
- Preventing inaccurate content changes
- Helping remove counterfeit offers
- Supporting enforcement efforts
If you are losing the Buy Box due to pricing, MAP violations, or unauthorized sellers with authentic goods, Brand Registry will not solve that by itself.
That requires monitoring, enforcement, and supply chain control. Learn more about our Buy Box recovery program
Brand Gating: Is It Automatic?
Brand gating is often confused with Brand Registry.
Brand gating is a separate process where Amazon restricts which sellers can list your products.
There are several levels of gating:
- No gating
- Invoice-based gating
- Brand approval gating
- Full brand authorization required
Brand Registry does not guarantee gating. Amazon’s gating decisions are internal and not transparent.
It is difficult to predict or control.
The Bigger Picture: Where Brand Registry Fits
Brand Registry is a foundational layer of brand protection — but not the entire strategy.
A comprehensive marketplace protection approach typically includes:
- MAP monitoring
- Unauthorized seller tracking
- Test buys and serial number tracing
- Trademark enforcement
- Grey market supply chain control
- Buy Box diagnostics
- Distributor compliance management
Brand Registry enables IP enforcement.
It does not replace distribution oversight.
Common Mistakes Brands Make
- Enrolling in Brand Registry and assuming the problem is solved
- Filing aggressive complaints without proof
- Confusing authentic grey market sellers with counterfeiters
- Ignoring MAP and pricing violations
- Not monitoring external retailer pricing
Brand protection requires coordination between legal, ecommerce, and sales teams.
Final Thoughts
Amazon Brand Registry works by giving trademark owners enhanced tools to control content and enforce intellectual property rights.
It provides:
- Listing authority
- Infringement reporting tools
- Counterfeit enforcement access
- Greater visibility
But it does not automatically eliminate unauthorized sellers, enforce pricing policies, or guarantee Buy Box ownership.
Brand Registry is the control panel — not the enforcement engine.
When used correctly — alongside monitoring, MAP enforcement, and unauthorized seller removal — it becomes a powerful asset in protecting your brand’s marketplace presence.
The key is understanding what it does, what it doesn’t, and how it fits into a larger strategic framework.
Read more about the risks of selling on Amazon.
Brand Alignment 