To: | HERTZ SYSTEM, INC. (nyustmp@ladas.com) |
Subject: | U.S. TRADEMARK APPLICATION NO. 88225056 - FAST LANE - 1T18707835 |
Sent: | 6/5/2019 1:49:16 PM |
Sent As: | ECOM117@USPTO.GOV |
Attachments: |
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE (USPTO)
OFFICE ACTION (OFFICIAL LETTER) ABOUT APPLICANT’S TRADEMARK APPLICATION
U.S. APPLICATION SERIAL NO. 88225056
MARK: FAST LANE
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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: HERTZ SYSTEM, INC.
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CORRESPONDENT’S REFERENCE/DOCKET NO: CORRESPONDENT E-MAIL ADDRESS: |
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OFFICE ACTION
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. A RESPONSE TRANSMITTED THROUGH THE TRADEMARK ELECTRONIC APPLICATION SYSTEM (TEAS) MUST BE RECEIVED BEFORE MIDNIGHT EASTERN TIME OF THE LAST DAY OF THE RESPONSE PERIOD.
ISSUE/MAILING DATE: 6/5/2019
This NEW NON-FINAL Office action is in response to applicant’s communication filed on April 29, 2019.
In a previous Office action dated January 29, 2019, applicant was required to satisfy the following requirement: amend the identification of goods and/or services.
Based on applicant’s response, the trademark examining attorney notes that the following requirement has been satisfied: definite amended identification provided. See TMEP §§713.02, 714.04.
However, the assigned trademark examining attorney inadvertently omitted a requirement relevant to the mark in the subject application. See TMEP §§706, 711.02. Specifically, amendment of classification of specific services is required.
The trademark examining attorney apologizes for any inconvenience caused by the delay in raising this issue.
Accordingly, the following is a summary of issues that applicant must address.
SUMMARY OF ISSUES:
Applicant must respond to all issues raised in this Office action within six (6) months of the date of issuance of this Office action. 37 C.F.R. §2.62(a); see TMEP §711.02. If applicant does not respond within this time limit, the application will be abandoned. 37 C.F.R. §2.65(a).
REQUIREMENT – AMEND CLASSIFICATION OF SERVICES IN INTERNATIONAL CLASS 45
Applicant has classified “identification verification services, namely, using electronic and biometric authentication of personal identification information for verifying the identity of vehicle renters” in International Class 45; however, the proper classification is International Class 42. While, personal background investigation services are classified in International Class 45, applicant’s identified services are not part of a personal background investigation. Rather, the nature of the primary service activity described indicates that applicant provides a technology service, namely, biometric hardware and/or software to assess a car rental customer’s biometric identification. Moreover, applicant’s specimen of record further supports that its identification verification services are indeed primarily technology services. See Application pg. # 10 (Applicant’s specimen of record showing that its services require rental car customers to look into a camera to “capture biometrics”). Accordingly, the proper classification for these services is International Class 42.
Applicant may respond by (1) reclassifying these services in the proper international class, or (2) deleting the identification from the application. See 37 C.F.R. §§2.86(a), 6.1; TMEP §§1403.02 et seq.
TEAS PLUS OR TEAS REDUCED FEE (TEAS RF) APPLICANTS – TO MAINTAIN LOWER FEE, ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS MUST BE MET, INCLUDING SUBMITTING DOCUMENTS ONLINE:
Applicants who filed their application online using the lower-fee TEAS Plus or TEAS RF application form must (1) file certain documents online using TEAS, including responses to Office actions (see TMEP §§819.02(b), 820.02(b) for a complete list of these documents); (2) maintain a valid e-mail correspondence address; and (3) agree to receive correspondence from the USPTO by e-mail throughout the prosecution of the application. See 37 C.F.R. §§2.22(b), 2.23(b); TMEP §§819, 820. TEAS Plus or TEAS RF applicants who do not meet these requirements must submit an additional processing fee of $125 per class of goods and/or services. 37 C.F.R. §§2.6(a)(1)(v), 2.22(c), 2.23(c); TMEP §§819.04, 820.04. However, in certain situations, TEAS Plus or TEAS RF applicants may respond to an Office action by authorizing an examiner’s amendment by telephone or e-mail without incurring this additional fee.
ASSISTANCE
/Rhoda Nkojo/
Examining Attorney
Law Office 117
(571)272-8468
Rhoda.Nkojo@USPTO.gov
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 the Trademark Electronic Application System (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 the Trademark Status and Document Retrieval (TSDR) system at http://tsdr.gov.uspto.report/. Please keep a copy of the TSDR status screen. If the status shows no change for more than six months, contact the Trademark Assistance Center by e-mail at TrademarkAssistanceCenter@uspto.gov or 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/trademarks/teas/correspondence.jsp.