UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
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SERIAL NO: 79/009638
APPLICANT: Unilever N.V.
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CORRESPONDENT ADDRESS: |
RETURN ADDRESS: Commissioner for Trademarks P.O. Box 1451 Alexandria, VA 22313-1451
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MARK: AMAZE
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CORRESPONDENT’S REFERENCE/DOCKET NO: N/A
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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Serial Number 79/009638
INTERNATIONAL REGISTRATION NO. 0822728
This is a PROVISIONAL PARTIAL REFUSAL of the trademark and service mark in the above-referenced U.S. application that applies to only the following goods and services in the application: “Nutritional additives for medical purposes; dietetic and nutritional substances for medical use, intended for slimming purposes and weight check,” in International Class 5; “Fish; milk products; prepared food products, not included in other classes; snacks, not included in other classes,” in International Class 29; “Preparations made from cereals, and confectionery; sauces (condiments); prepared food products not included in other classes; snacks, not included in other classes, including crunch bars,” in International Class 30; “Other non-alcoholic drinks; non-alcoholic drinks based on cereals (not included in other classes); preparations for making beverages,” in International Class 32. 15 U.S.C. §1141h(c).
APPLICANT OR ATTORNEY CAN RESPOND TO PROVISIONAL REFUSAL:
Applicant may respond directly to this provisional refusal Office action, or applicant’s attorney may respond on applicant’s behalf.
NOTE: Attorneys hired to represent an applicant in a trademark matter before the Office must be eligible under 37 C.F.R. §10.14:
(1) Attorneys residing in the United States who are in good standing with the bar of any United States court or the highest court of any state, may practice before the Office in trademark matters.
(2) A foreign attorney not residing in the United States who is in good standing before the patent or trademark office of the country in which he or she resides, may practice before the Office in trademark matters only in cases where the patent and trademark office of that foreign country allows substantially reciprocal privileges to those permitted to practice before the Office. Currently, Canadian attorneys are the only foreign attorneys recognized as meeting this criterion. A foreign attorney who meets the requirements of 37 C.F.R. §10.14(c) can only represent parties located in the country in which the foreign attorney resides and practices. TMEP §602.
The Office cannot aid in the selection of an attorney. 37 C.F.R. §2.11.
If applicant is not represented by an attorney, applicant may appoint a domestic representative who would receive correspondence from the Office and be served process or notice of proceedings affecting the application. 15 U.S.C. §1141h(d); 37 C.F.R. §2.24.
THE APPLICATION HAS BEEN PROVISIONALLY PARTIALLY REFUSED AS FOLLOWS:
NOTE: This is a partial refusal Office action. The requirement(s) in this Office action apply only to specified goods and services in the U.S. application.
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 or pending mark has been found that would bar registration under Trademark Act Section 2(d), 15 U.S.C. §1052(d). TMEP §704.02.
THIS REQUIREMENT APPLIES ONLY TO THE GOODS AND SERVICES SPECIFIED THEREIN
The trademark examining attorney examines identifications of goods and/or services for acceptability in accordance with the Rules of Practice in Trademark Cases and USPTO policies and procedures in effect at the time registration is sought. Descriptions of goods and/or services found in earlier-filed applications and registrations are not always determinative on the issue of acceptability of such identifications in the present time. For guidance on writing identifications of goods and/or services, please use the online searchable Manual of Acceptable Identifications of Goods and Services at http://tess2.gov.uspto.report/netahtml/tidm/html, which is frequently updated in accordance with prevailing rules and policies. See TMEP §§702.03(a)(iv) and 1402.04.
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.
The international classification of goods and/or services in applications filed under Trademark Act Section 66(a) cannot be changed from the classification given to the goods and/or services by the International Bureau of the World Intellectual Property Organization in the corresponding international registration. TMEP §§1401.03(d), 1401.04 and 1904.02(b).
The wording “nutritional additives for medical purposes” in the identification of goods needs clarification because the specific uses have not been identified. Applicant may change this wording to “nutritional additives for medical purposes for use in foods and dietary supplements for human consumption,” if accurate. TMEP §1402.01.
The wording “dietetic and nutritional substances for medical use, intended for slimming purposes and weight check” in the identification of services needs clarification to identify the type of substances, e.g., food supplements. TMEP §1402.01.
Applicant may adopt the following identification of goods in class 05, if accurate:
“Nutritional additives for medical purposes for use in foods and dietary supplements for human consumption; dietetic and nutritional food supplements for medical use, intended for slimming purposes and weight check; food for babies.”
The wording “fish” in the identification of goods needs clarification to indicate the specific types of fish. The wording “milk products” in the identification of goods needs clarification to identify the specific milk products in class 29 by their common commercial name. The wording “prepared food products” in the identification of goods needs clarification to specify the specific prepared products in class 29, e.g., meat, beef, walnuts. The wording “snacks, not included in other class” in the identification of goods needs clarification to indicate the specific types of snacks in class 29. TMEP §1402.01.
Applicant may adopt the following identification of goods in class 29, if accurate:
“Meat; fish, namely, [indicate specific types - not live, e.g., salmon]; poultry and game; meat extracts; preserved, dried and cooked fruits and vegetables; jellies, jams, compotes; eggs, milk and milk products, namely, [indicate specific products in class 29 by common commercial name e.g., fermented milk, milk powder]; edible oils and fats; prepared food products, namely prepared [indicate specific products in class 29 by common commercial name e.g., meat, beef, walnuts]; soups; snacks, namely, [indicate specific types of snacks in class 29 by common commercial name e.g., fruit-based snack food, dehydrated fruit snacks].”
The wording “preparations made from cereals” in the identification of goods needs clarification to indicate the specific preparations in class 30 by their common commercial name. The wording “confectionery” in the identification of goods needs clarification to indicate they type of confectionery in class 30 by its common commercial name. Applicant must remove any parentheses from the identification of goods and/or services and incorporate the parenthetical information into the description. The wording “prepared food products” in the identification of goods needs clarification to specify the specific prepared products in class 30, e.g., pizza, meat pies, wassabi. The wording “snacks, not included in other class” in the identification of goods needs clarification to indicate the specific types of snacks in class 30. TMEP §§1402.01, 1402.12.
TMEP §1402.01.
Applicant may adopt the following identification of goods in class 30, if accurate:
The wording “other non-alcoholic drinks” and “non-alcoholic drinks based on cereals” in the identification of goods needs clarification to specify the type of drinks in class 32, e.g., colas, energy drinks. The wording “preparations for making beverages” in the identification of goods needs clarification to indicate the specific type of beverages, e.g., fruit drinks. TMEP §1402.01.
Applicant may adopt the following identification of goods in class 32, if accurate:
“Mineral and aerated waters and other non-alcoholic drinks, namely, [indicate specific drinks in class 32 by common commercial name, e.g., colas, energy drinks]; non-alcoholic drinks based on cereals, namely, [indicate specific drinks in class 32 by common commercial name, e.g., colas, energy drinks] preparations for making [indicate specific type of beverage, e.g., fruit drinks].”
Please be advised that applicant’s claim of priority cannot be accepted because the filing date of the application that forms the basis for the priority claim in this case is more than six months before the date of the international registration or the subsequent designation requesting an extension of protection to the United States. 15 U.S.C. §1141g; 37 C.F.R. §7.27; TMEP §806.01(e).
Applicant may designate a domestic representative upon whom notices or process may be served. Trademark Act Section 1(e), 15 U.S.C. §1051(e); 37 C.F.R. §2.24; TMEP §§604, 811 and 1013. If applicant does not designate a domestic representative, notices or process in proceedings affecting the mark may be served on the Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Trademark Act Section 1(e), 15 U.S.C. §1051(e). The trademark examining attorney provides the following example for applicant's convenience in preparing an Appointment of Domestic Representative.
DESIGNATION OF DOMESTIC REPRESENTATIVE
________________________ _________________________
Identify the mark Serial No.
________________________ _________________________
Name of applicant Date of signature
__________________________________________________________________
(Name of domestic representative)
whose postal address is
________________________________________________
________________________________________________
is hereby designated applicant's representative upon whom notices or process in proceedings affecting the mark may be served.
____________________________
(Signature of applicant)
If applicant should fail to respond to this Office action within the six month time limit, then the following goods and services will be deleted from the application:
“Nutritional additives for medical purposes; dietetic and nutritional substances for medical use, intended for slimming purposes and weight check,” in International Class 5; “Fish; milk products; prepared food products, not included in other classes; snacks, not included in other classes,” in International Class 29; “Preparations made from cereals, and confectionery; sauces (condiments); prepared food products not included in other classes; snacks, not included in other classes, including crunch bars,” in International Class 30; “Other non-alcoholic drinks; non-alcoholic drinks based on cereals (not included in other classes); preparations for making beverages,” in International Class 32.
The application will then proceed forward for the following goods and services only:
“Food for babies,” in International class 5; “Meat; poultry and game; meat extracts; preserved, dried and cooked fruits and vegetables; jellies, jams, compotes; eggs, milk; edible oils and fats; soups,” in International Class 29; “Coffee, tea, cocoa, sugar, rice, tapioca, sago, artificial coffee, flour; pasta, noodles, corn starch, corn flakes, porridge, bread, biscuits, pastry; ices; honey, treacle; yeast, baking-powder; salt, mustard; vinegar, seasonings, spices,” in International Class 30; and “Mineral and aerated waters,” in International Class 32.
37 C.F.R. §2.65(a).
If applicant has questions about its application or needs assistance in responding to this Office action, please telephone the assigned trademark examining attorney directly at the number below.
/Daniel Brody/
Trademark Examining Attorney
Law Office 115
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
(571) 272-9724
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.