To: | Griffith Holdings, Inc. (iplaw@brouse.com) |
Subject: | TRADEMARK APPLICATION NO. 77004358 - FINISH LINE - 21138.43672 |
Sent: | 2/18/2007 2:33:46 PM |
Sent As: | ECOM108@USPTO.GOV |
Attachments: | Attachment - 1 Attachment - 2 |
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
SERIAL NO: 77/004358
APPLICANT: Griffith Holdings, Inc.
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CORRESPONDENT ADDRESS: |
RETURN ADDRESS: Commissioner for Trademarks P.O. Box 1451 Alexandria, VA 22313-1451
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MARK: FINISH LINE
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CORRESPONDENT’S REFERENCE/DOCKET NO: 21138.43672
CORRESPONDENT EMAIL ADDRESS: |
Please provide in all correspondence:
1. Filing date, serial number, mark and applicant's name. 2. Date of this Office Action. 3. Examining Attorney's name and Law Office number. 4. Your telephone number and e-mail address.
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MAILING/E-MAILING DATE INFORMATION: If the mailing or e-mailing date of this Office action does not appear above, this information can be obtained by visiting the USPTO website at http://tarr.gov.uspto.report/, inserting the application serial number, and viewing the prosecution history for the mailing date of the most recently issued Office communication.
Serial Number 77/004358
The assigned trademark examining attorney has reviewed the referenced application and has determined the following:
The Office records have been searched and no similar registered mark has been found that would bar registration under Trademark Act Section 2(d), 15 U.S.C. §1052(d). TMEP §704.02. However, please be advised that a potentially conflicting mark in a prior-filed pending application may present a bar to registration.
Information regarding pending Application Serial No. 78653478 is enclosed. The filing date of the referenced application precedes applicant’s filing date. There may be a likelihood of confusion between the two marks under Trademark Act Section 2(d), 15 U.S.C. §1052(d). If the referenced application registers, registration may be refused in this case under Section 2(d). 37 C.F.R. §2.83; TMEP §§1208 et seq. Therefore, upon entry of a response to this Office action, action on this case may be suspended pending final disposition of the earlier-filed application.
If applicant believes there is no potential conflict between this application and the earlier-filed application, then applicant may present arguments relevant to the issue in a response to this Office action. The election not to submit arguments at this time in no way limits applicant’s right to address this issue at a later point.
Identification of Services Requires Clarification
The identification of services is indefinite and must be clarified. TMEP §1402.01. Applicant must specify the common commercial or generic name for the services. If the services have no common commercial or generic name, applicant must describe the nature of the services as well as their main purpose, channels of trade, and the intended consumer(s).
Applicant must also adopt the appropriate international classification number for the goods and services identified in the application. The United States uses the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of the Registration of Marks, established by the World Intellectual Property Organization to classify goods and services. 37 C.F.R. §6.1; TMEP §§1401 et seq. In this case, it appears applicant is offering a form of marketing services, which would be properly classified in International Class 035.
Failure to respond to a request for information can be grounds for refusing registration. In re DTI P'ship LLP, 67 USPQ2d 1699, 1701 (TTAB 2003). Merely stating that information about the goods or services is available on applicant’s website is an inappropriate response to a request for additional information, and is insufficient to make the relevant information of record. In re Planalytics, Inc., 70 USPQ2d 1453, 1457-1458 (TTAB 2004).
Applicant may adopt the following identification, if accurate:
International Class 035: Business marketing in the field of Internet marketing, namely, providing a service for converting search engine rankings and site traffic into new customer opportunities by facilitating web site visitor actions.
TMEP §1402.01.
For assistance with identifying goods and/or services in trademark applications, please see the online searchable Manual of Acceptable Identifications of Goods and Services at http://tess2.gov.uspto.report/netahtml/tidm.html.
Please note that, while the identification of goods may be amended to clarify or limit the goods, adding to the goods or broadening the scope of the goods is not permitted. 37 C.F.R. §2.71(a); TMEP §1402.06. Therefore, applicant may not amend the identification to include goods that are not within the scope of the goods set forth in the present identification.
/Lydia M. Belzer/
Trademark Examining Attorney
Law Office 108
571-272-5594
Lydia.Belzer@uspto.gov (informal responses only)
HOW TO RESPOND TO THIS OFFICE ACTION:
STATUS OF APPLICATION: To check the status of your application, visit the Office’s Trademark Applications and Registrations Retrieval (TARR) system at http://tarr.uspto.gov.
VIEW APPLICATION DOCUMENTS ONLINE: Documents in the electronic file for pending applications can be viewed and downloaded online at http://portal.gov.uspto.report/external/portal/tow.
GENERAL TRADEMARK INFORMATION: For general information about trademarks, please visit the Office’s website at http://www.gov.uspto.report/main/trademarks.htm
FOR INQUIRIES OR QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS OFFICE ACTION, PLEASE CONTACT THE ASSIGNED EXAMINING ATTORNEY SPECIFIED ABOVE.