To: | Johnson Creek Enterprises, LLC (mkeipdocket@michaelbest.com) |
Subject: | U.S. TRADEMARK APPLICATION NO. 85561258 - ORIGINAL SMOKE JUICE - 028277-9018 |
Sent: | 5/2/2012 10:24:07 PM |
Sent As: | ECOM103@USPTO.GOV |
Attachments: | Attachment - 1 Attachment - 2 Attachment - 3 Attachment - 4 Attachment - 5 Attachment - 6 Attachment - 7 Attachment - 8 Attachment - 9 Attachment - 10 Attachment - 11 Attachment - 12 |
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE (USPTO)
OFFICE ACTION (OFFICIAL LETTER) ABOUT APPLICANT’S TRADEMARK APPLICATION
APPLICATION SERIAL NO. 85561258
MARK: ORIGINAL SMOKE JUICE
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CORRESPONDENT ADDRESS: |
CLICK HERE TO RESPOND TO THIS LETTER: http://www.gov.uspto.report/trademarks/teas/response_forms.jsp
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APPLICANT: Johnson Creek Enterprises, LLC
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CORRESPONDENT’S REFERENCE/DOCKET NO: CORRESPONDENT E-MAIL ADDRESS: |
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TO AVOID ABANDONMENT OF APPLICANT’S TRADEMARK APPLICATION, THE USPTO MUST RECEIVE APPLICANT’S COMPLETE RESPONSE TO THIS LETTER WITHIN 6 MONTHS OF THE ISSUE/MAILING DATE BELOW.
ISSUE/MAILING DATE: 5/2/2012
The trademark examining attorney has searched the Office’s database of registered and pending marks and has found no conflicting marks that would bar registration under Trademark Act Section 2(d). TMEP §704.02; see 15 U.S.C. §1052(d).
However, before the application can proceed, the Applicant must respond timely and completely to the issue(s) below. 15 U.S.C. §1062(b); 37 C.F.R. §§2.62, 2.65(a); TMEP §§711, 718.03.
Registration Refused: Descriptiveness
In this instance Applicant applied to register the mark "ORIGINAL SMOKE JUICE" for "A propylene glycol-based liquid used in electronic smoking devices to produce the vapor and supply the flavor."
Applicant's mark is a combination of descriptive terms with a laudatory term. As indicated earlier, ORIGINAL which means "[a] primary form or type from which varieties are derived," is a laudatory term when used in Applicant's mark. "SMOKE JUICE" is also a descriptive term when used with Applicant's goods as demonstrated by the attached evidence wherein the term SMOKE JUICE is used to refer to the class of goods that Applicant is marketing. As evidence of this term being used to refer to the class of Applicant's goods, the examining attorney herewith attaches several examples of evidence. Including, but not limited to the following:
What is smoker juice? Really, it is just another name for e-liquid, or nicotine fluid, or nic juice. Smoke juice seems to have many different names, but it's most prevalent name is E-Liquid. However, you can call it whatever you want. !
Smoke juice can come in many different flavors, strengths, and tastes. The flavor list is almost endless. Practically any flavor you can think of can actually be made into smoke juice. (see attached evidence.)
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Still, questions linger about the safety of e-cigarettes. Some smoke juices contain a toxin called diethylene glycol or DEG; it’s used in antifreeze. And there are concerns that e-cigarettes could increase a person’s addiction to nicotine. Even so, Christian Berkey, owner of Johnson Creek, claims as many as 40,000 people across the world each week are switching to electronic brands. In case you’re wondering, most smoking bans do not outlaw e-cigarettes, so discretion is in the hands of management. (see attached evidence.)
In addition, Applicant has already acknowledged the term smoke juice is descriptive, as demonstrated by the attached registration wherein Applicant has disclaimed the wording "SMOKE JUICE." (see attached registration.)
Because Applicant's mark is nothing more than a laudatory term coupled with an arguably generic term for the goods, the mark as a whole is descriptive and registration is denied.
Informalities
If the applicant chooses to respond to the refusal to register, the applicant must also respond to the following informalities.
Disclaimer Required
No claim is made to the exclusive right to use “SMOKE JUICE” apart from the mark as shown.
TMEP §1213.08(a)(i); see In re Owatonna Tool Co., 231 USPQ 493 (Comm’r Pats. 1983).
Supplemental Register
If the applicant has any questions or needs assistance in responding to this Office action, please email the assigned examining attorney or call the trademark helpline at 571-272-9250.
/tmm/
Theodore McBride Law Office 103
HELP LINE: 571-272-9250
theodore.mcbride1@uspto.gov
phone: 571-272-9281
TO RESPOND TO THIS LETTER: Go to http://www.gov.uspto.report/trademarks/teas/response_forms.jsp. Please wait 48-72 hours from the issue/mailing date before using TEAS, to allow for necessary system updates of the application. For technical assistance with online forms, e-mail TEAS@uspto.gov. For questions about the Office action itself, please contact the assigned trademark examining attorney. E-mail communications will not be accepted as responses to Office actions; therefore, do not respond to this Office action by e-mail.
All informal e-mail communications relevant to this application will be placed in the official application record.
WHO MUST SIGN THE RESPONSE: It must be personally signed by an individual applicant or someone with legal authority to bind an applicant (i.e., a corporate officer, a general partner, all joint applicants). If an applicant is represented by an attorney, the attorney must sign the response.
PERIODICALLY CHECK THE STATUS OF THE APPLICATION: To ensure that applicant does not miss crucial deadlines or official notices, check the status of the application every three to four months using Trademark Applications and Registrations Retrieval (TARR) at http://tarr.gov.uspto.report/. Please keep a copy of the complete TARR screen. If TARR shows no change for more than six months, call 1-800-786-9199. For more information on checking status, see http://www.gov.uspto.report/trademarks/process/status/.
TO UPDATE CORRESPONDENCE/E-MAIL ADDRESS: Use the TEAS form at http://www.gov.uspto.report/teas/eTEASpageE.htm.