UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE

 

 

 

OFFICE ACTION

 

RESPONSE TIME LIMIT:  TO AVOID ABANDONMENT, THE OFFICE MUST RECEIVE A PROPER RESPONSE TO THIS OFFICE ACTION WITHIN 6 MONTHS OF THE MAILING OR E-MAILING DATE. 

 

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  78/790208

 

The assigned trademark examining attorney has reviewed the referenced application and has determined the following.

 

Search Results

The examining attorney has searched the Office records and has found no similar registered or pending mark which would bar registration under Trademark Act Section 2(d), 15 U.S.C. §1052(d).  TMEP §704.02.

Identification of Goods

The wording in the identification of goods is unacceptable as indefinite because it fails to indicate, with greater specificity, the particular type of goods being provided by the applicant.  Specifically, the wording “milk products,” “processed marine products,” “meat products,” “mixes for curry and stew,” “lavar,” “pulses,” “confectionary,” “cereal preparations,” “farinaceous foods,” “hamburger,” “box lunch,” “hot dog,” “koji cereals,” “dessert mixes,” “sake lees,” “flour-based batter mix” and “starch,” standing alone, is indefinite.  Applicant must amend the identification to further clarify the nature of the identified goods.  The applicant may amend this wording to the following, if accurate.  TMEP §1402.01.

 

Edible oils and fats; milk products excluding ice cream, ice milk and frozen yogurt; meats; eggs; edible fish and crustaceans not live; frozen vegetables; frozen fruits; meat products, namely, ____ [specify, e.g., luncheon meats]; processed marine products, namely, ____ [specify, e.g., processed edible seaweed]; processed vegetables; processed fruit; aburage fried soybean curd; koridofu soybean curd frozen and then dried; konnyaku jelly made from devil’s tongue root; soybean milk; tofu soybean curd; natto formented soybeans; processed eggs; soup mixes; pasta sauces; ochazuke-nori dried laver for flavoring boiled rice with green tea;  namemono formented edible soybean paste, not for soup; processed pulses; protein for human consumption; skim milk powder and egg powder; in International 29.

 

Furikake seasonings for boiled rice; tea; coffee and cocoa; confectionary, namely, ____ [specify, e.g., candy]; bread and buns; seasonings; spices; instant ice cream mixes; instant sherbet mixes; coffee beans; cereal preparations, namely, farinaceous food pastes for human consumption; fresh pasta; instant pasta; bread crumb; buckwheat noodle; wheat noodle; steamed bun stuffed with minced meat; sandwiches;  steamed meat dumpling; sushi; takoyaki grilled dumplings with bits of octopus; Chinese steamed bun with meat; hamburger sandwiches; pizza; box lunch, namely, hot dog sandwiches; meat pie; ravioli; yeast powder; processed cereals in the nature of koji fermented rice cereals treated with enzyme-producing mucor called aspergillus oryzae; yeast; baking powder; dessert mixes, namely, instant cake mixes; sake lees for food, namely, the sediment from fermentation of sake used to manufacture distilled spirits; husked rice; husked oats; husked barley; wheat flour for making tempura; flour-based bread crumb or cracker meal for making fried foods; gluten for food;  flour-based cake batter mix comprised of a dry blend of flour; food starch; bread crumbs; bread-based bread mix comprised of flour-based bread crumbs for cracker meal; flour; wheat flour; tempura batter mix for making tempura; noodles, including boiled and dried noodles; in International Class 30.

 

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 and/or services may be amended to clarify or limit the goods and/or services, adding to the goods and/or services or broadening the scope of the goods and/or services is not permitted.  37 C.F.R. §2.71(a); TMEP §1402.06.  Therefore, applicant may not amend the identification to include goods and/or services that are not within the scope of the goods and/or services set forth in the present identification.

 

Translation of Foreign Wording

The applicant must submit an English translation of all foreign wording in the mark.  37 C.F.R. §2.61(b); TMEP §809.

 

Certificate of Registration Required

Applicant must submit a copy of the foreign registration to satisfy the requirement of Trademark Act Section 44(e).  15 U.S.C. §1126(e).  If the foreign certificate of registration is not written in English, then applicant must provide an English translation signed by the translator.  See TMEP §§1004.01 and 1004.01(b).

 

The application does not presently contain a copy of the foreign registration.  An application filed under Section 44(e) must include a true copy, photocopy, certification or certified copy of a foreign registration or a registered extension of protection of an international registration from the applicant’s country of origin.  If applicant’s country of origin does not issue registrations or certificates of extension of protection, applicant may submit a copy of the international registration, showing that protection of the international registration has been extended to applicant’s country of origin.  TMEP §§1004 et seq. and 1016.

 

Applicant’s country of origin must either be a party to a convention or treaty relating to trademarks to which the United States is also a party, or must extend reciprocal registration rights to nationals of the United States by law.  See TMEP §§1002.01 and 1004.

 

Applications Filed Under Sections 1(b) and 44(e)

Applicant must advise the trademark examining attorney whether applicant intends to rely solely on the foreign registration as the basis for registration.  The foreign registration alone may serve as the basis for obtaining a U.S. registration resulting from this application.

 

Unless applicant indicates otherwise, this Office will presume that the applicant wishes to rely on both Section 1(b) and Section 44(e) as the bases for registration.  In this case, although the application may be approved for publication, the mark will not register until an acceptable allegation of use has been filed.

 

If the applicant has any questions or needs assistance in responding to this Office action, please telephone the assigned examining attorney.

 

 

 

 

/Renee McCray/

Trademark Examining Attorney

Law Office 111

571.272.9388

 

 

HOW TO RESPOND TO THIS OFFICE ACTION:

• ONLINE RESPONSE:  You may respond using the Office’s Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS) Response to Office action form available on our website at http://www.gov.uspto.report/teas/index.html.  If the Office action issued via e-mail, you must wait 72 hours after receipt of the Office action to respond via TEAS.  NOTE:  Do not respond by e-mail.  THE USPTO WILL NOT ACCEPT AN E-MAILED RESPONSE.
• REGULAR MAIL RESPONSE:  To respond by regular mail, your response should be sent to the mailing return address above, and include the serial number, law office number, and examining attorney’s name.  NOTE:  The filing date of the response will be the date of receipt in the Office, not the postmarked date.  To ensure your response is timely, use a certificate of mailing.  37 C.F.R. §2.197.

 

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.