Title protection is valid as long as the designated work is commercially distributed. This means that the period of validity varies depending on the medium: a work is considered to be in use if it is adapted, sold, or broadcast. This also applies to works that are currently unavailable but for which a new edition is being considered. If the entitled party no longer uses the title, it is no longer protected under Sections 15 and 3 of the German Trademark Act (MarkenG). According to the German Publishers and Booksellers Association, a title is considered to be no longer in use if the work has not been available for two years; in the case of periodical works, after one year. In some cases, intervals of five years after the discontinuation of distribution are also common, for example if the work was previously distributed commercially for a particularly long period of time and is considered a »classic.«.

If a title is used twice despite title protection by one party, the owner of the title protection claim has ten years to claim damages. After becoming aware of the title being used by a third party, the plaintiff has three years to assert their claim. After these periods have expired, the title owner no longer has the right to claim damages or file a lawsuit to prevent the use of the title. In such exceptional cases and by separate agreement with the title holder, work titles may also be assigned twice. In the field of fiction, for example, if the books are of completely different genres, the parties may agree in special cases to use a similar title jointly – in the case of books, a unique ISBN number also ensures that the works can be definitively differentiated.