UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
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REGISTRATION NO: 2463969
REGISTRANT: CHURCH & DWIGHT CO., INC.
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September 14, 2009
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CORRESPONDENT ADDRESS:
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RETURN ADDRESS: Commissioner for Trademarks P.O. Box 1451 Alexandria, VA 22313-1451
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MARK: FIRST RESPONSE
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CORRESPONDENT’S REFERENCE/DOCKET NO: 17830
CORRESPONDENT EMAIL ADDRESS: |
Please provide in all correspondence:
1. Registration date, registration number, mark and registrant's name. 2. Date of this Office Action. 3. Examiner's name and Post Registration Division. 4. Your telephone number and e-mail address.
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Registration Number 2463969
The Section 7 Amendment submitted on May 13, 2009 is not accepted for the reasons set forth below.
DRAWING
The drawing submitted with the Section 7 Amendment shows the mark in black and/or white and gray. However, the Section 7 Amendment does not specify whether color is a feature of the mark or whether the mark is intended to be represented only in black and white. There are only two options for presenting the mark: (1) color drawings and (2) black and white drawings. The appearance of gray has created an ambiguity as to whether the mark features color and clarification is required. See 37 C.F.R. §§2.52(b)-(b)(1) and 2.173(f); cf. TMEP §807.07(f)(i) and (ii).
(1) If the proposed amended mark is not in color, the owner must submit the following statement: “The mark is not in color.”
(2) If color is a feature of the proposed amended mark, the owner must submit both a statement listing all the colors in the drawing and a statement specifying where the colors appear. The color claim and color location statement must include all the colors in the drawing. See 37 C.F.R. §§2.52(b)(1) and 2.173(f); cf. TMEP §§807.07 et seq. If the black, white, and/or gray are not claimed as colors in the mark, they should be omitted from the color claim. In addition, the color location statement should be amended to specify where the black, white and/or gray appear in the drawing and to state that they constitute background, outlining, shading or transparent areas and are not a part of the mark. The following format is suggested: “The colors [specify gray and/or black and/or white] are claimed as a feature of the mark. The color [specify gray and/or black and/or white] appears in the wording [indicate wording, as appropriate] and in the design [identify design element, as appropriate]. Specify gray, black and/or white if appropriate and only if not claimed as color: The [specify gray and/or black] represents outlining and/or shading, and/or the white represents a transparent area and is/are not a part of the mark.]”
RESPONSE TIME DEADLINE
The owner has six months from the issuance date of this letter to respond to all the issues raised in this letter. In order to expedite the processing of your Section 7 Amendment, the early submission of a response to this letter is encouraged. If a complete response is not received in the Office within this time period, then the Section 7 Amendment will be considered abandoned. 37 C.F.R. §2.176. The fee for filing the Section 7 Amendment will not be refunded.
/Territa Gray/
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
Post Registration Division of Trademark Services
Office (571) 272-9527
Fax (571) 273-9527
How to respond to this Office Action:
To respond formally via regular mail, your response should be sent to the mailing Return Address listed above and include the registration number, the words 'Post Registration' and the examiner's name on the upper right corner of each page of your response.
FOR INQUIRIES OR QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS OFFICE ACTION, PLEASE CONTACT THE ASSIGNED EXAMINER.