Is it possible for the author to register a logo or the name of his/her applicat

Question

Is it possible for the author to register a logo or the name of his/her application when it is open-source because it uses a gpl library (for example)? The application uses the library but it has its own features, that is it's not a modification of the library. So everyone can see the source code, downloading an "anonymous" non-branded version from Sourceforge, but none can use the logo or the name and so the author can sell it from his/her web-site (for example) to non-expert users, only after payment. Is he/she obliged to give directly the source code, or it is enough that there is the non-branded version available on Sourceforge or other official repository?

Explanation / Answer

This question, apart from the fact it's hardly related to programming, suffers from a major issue. Which country are you considering? In most of Europe in general, and in France in particular, your intellectual property is protected, and a logo, as it is an artwork, will be protected without any other step unless you expressly make it public domain.

However, other countries and regions may differ, and you would need a lawyer with expertise in global intellectual property to answer decisively.

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