Offc Action Outgoing

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

Office Action (Official Letter) About Applicant’s Trademark Application

 

 

 

FINAL OFFICE ACTION

 

The USPTO must receive applicant’s response to this letter within six months of the issue date below or the application will be abandoned.  Respond using the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS) and/or Electronic System for Trademark Trials and Appeals (ESTTA).  A link to the appropriate TEAS response form and/or to ESTTA for an appeal appears at the end of this Office action. 

 

 

Issue date:  December 04, 2019

 

 INTRODUCTION

 

This Office action is in response to applicant’s communication filed on November 13, 2019.

 

In a previous Office action(s) dated May 14, 2019, applicant was required to satisfy the following requirements:  Identification and Classification of Goods and Services Amendment Required, Multiple-Class Application Requirements, Disclaimer Required – Class 016, 035, 039, 041, and 043.

 

Based on applicant’s response, the trademark examining attorney notes that the following requirements have been satisfied: Multiple-Class Application Requirements, Disclaimer Required – Class 016, 035, 039, 041, and 043..  See TMEP §§713.02, 714.04. 

 

Further, the trademark examining attorney maintains and now makes FINAL the requirement in the summary of issues below.  See 37 C.F.R. §2.63(b); TMEP §714.04.

 

SUMMARY OF ISSUES MADE FINAL that applicant must address:

• Identification and Classification of Goods and Services Amendment Required
• Advisory: Partial Abandonment

SEARCH OF OFFICE’S DATABASE OF MARKS

 

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).

 

IDENTIFICATION AND CLASSIFICATION OF GOODS AND SERVICES AMENDMENT REQUIRED

 

The wording “providing information about hotels and temporary accommodations” in the identification of services for International Class 043 must be clarified because it is too broad and could include services in other international classes.  See 37 C.F.R. §2.32(a)(6); TMEP §§1402.01, 1402.03.  In particular, this wording could encompass “providing hotel rate comparison information” in Class 035 and “providing a website featuring information in the field of hotels and temporary accommodations for travelers” in Class 043. Applicant must clarify the nature/purpose of the information and classify accordingly.

 

The identification of services as highlighted below is indefinite and must be clarified because the nature and purpose of the access services is unclear.  See 37 C.F.R. §2.32(a)(6); TMEP §1402.01.  Applicant must amend the identification to specify the common commercial or generic name of the services.  See TMEP §1402.01.  If the services have no common commercial or generic name, applicant must describe or explain the nature of the services using clear and succinct language.  See id.

 

Applicant may adopt the following wording, if accurate: 

 

International Class 014: imitation leather key chains; leather key chains

 

International Class 016: pens; stickers; posters; push pins; fold out paper or plastic shopping bags; printed publications, namely, magazines, booklets and pamphlets in the fields of transportation and travel

 

International Class 018: bags, namely, courier satchels; backpacks, luggage; fold out textile, leather, mesh, reusable, or canvas shopping bags

 

International Class 021: lunch cooler bags, namely, thermal insulated lunch bags for food or beverages; drinking glasses, coffee cups; beer steins

 

International Class 025: clothing, namely, adult and children's clothing, namely, sweatshirts, t-shirts, golf shirts, vests, jackets, hats

 

International Class 028: toys, namely, dolls, radio controlled toy airplanes, toy airplanes, toy flying saucers for toss games; models, namely, scale model airplanes; playing cards; plush toys; golf balls; golf equipment, namely, golf tees and divot repair tools

 

International Class 035: on-line retail store services offered in connection with an airline featuring a wide variety of souvenir goods, convenience items for travelers and general consumer merchandise via a website on a global computer network; retail store services offered in connection with an airline featuring souvenir goods, convenience items for travelers and general consumer merchandise; consumer loyalty services for commercial, promotional and/or advertising purposes, namely, business administration of a frequent flyer program that allows members to purchase air transportation, tour operator and travel operator goods and services with redeemable points; issuing gift certificates which may then be redeemed for goods or services; online retail store services featuring pre-recorded audiovisual content in the nature of movies and television programs; providing hotel rate comparison information

 

International Class 038: provision of live audio and video streaming services via the internet in the fields of movies, television programs, news, sports, magazines, music, cultural programs, and electronic games; providing multiple user wireless access to the internet; provision of internet access via a wireless based platform that allows guests to wirelessly access the internet via a software portal using their own devices; provision of in-flight internet access

 

International Class 039: air transportation services, namely, transportation of passengers, parcels, freight and cargo by air; arranging for rental of cars; providing information about air transportation and motor transportation, namely, transportation by airplane and motorcar; travel agency services, namely, making reservations and bookings for air transportation

 

International Class 041: providing on-line, magazines and journals in the fields of transportation and travel; provision of in-flight entertainment services, namely, online non-downloadable general feature magazines, television news shows, on-line computer games; onboard in-flight entertainment services, namely, on-line non-downloadable general feature magazines, television news shows, on-line computer games; provision of in-flight entertainment services in the nature of online non-downloadable movies and television programs featuring news, sports, music, and cultural programs; provision of in-flight entertainment services in the nature of providing temporary use of non-downloadable electronic games; provision of in-flight entertainment services in the nature of on-line non-downloadable general feature magazines; provision of in-flight entertainment services in the nature of on-line music, not downloadable; rental of pre-recorded audiovisual content in the nature of films, computer game programs, DVDs, movies and television programs

 

International Class 043: providing information in the field of hotels and temporary accommodations for travelers; travel agency services, namely, making reservations and bookings for hotels and temporary accommodations

 

Applicant may amend the identification to clarify or limit the goods and/or services, but not to broaden or expand the goods and/or services beyond those in the original application or as acceptably amended.  See 37 C.F.R. §2.71(a); TMEP §1402.06.  Generally, any deleted goods and/or services may not later be reinserted.  See TMEP §1402.07(e).

 

For assistance with identifying and classifying goods and services in trademark applications, please see the USPTO’s online searchable U.S. Acceptable Identification of Goods and Services Manual.  See TMEP §1402.04.

 

ADVISORY: PARTIAL ABANDONMENT

 

If applicant does not timely respond within six months of the issue date of this final Office action, the following services to which the final requirement applies will be deleted from the application by Examiner’s Amendment:  “Providing information about hotels and temporary accommodations” and “provision of in-flight entertainment services in the nature of movies, television programs featuring news, sports, music, and cultural programs”.  37 C.F.R. §2.65(a); see 15 U.S.C. §1062(b).

 

In such case, the application will proceed for the following: Classes 014, 016, 018, 021, 025, 028, 035, 038, 039, the services of “providing on-line, magazines and journals in the fields of transportation and travel; provision of in-flight entertainment services, namely, online non-downloadable general feature magazines, television news shows, on-line computer games; onboard in-flight entertainment services, namely, on-line non-downloadable general feature magazines, television news shows, on-line computer games; provision of in-flight entertainment services in the nature of providing temporary use of non-downloadable electronic games; provision of in-flight entertainment services in the nature of on-line non-downloadable general feature magazines; provision of in-flight entertainment services in the nature of on-line music, not downloadable; rental of pre-recorded audiovisual content in the nature of films, computer game programs, DVDs, movies and television programs” in Class 041 and “travel agency services, namely, making reservations and bookings for hotels and temporary accommodations “ in Class 043.   

 

ASSISTANCE

 

Please call or email the assigned trademark examining attorney with questions about this Office action.  Although the trademark examining attorney cannot provide legal advice or statements about applicant’s rights, the trademark examining attorney can provide applicant with additional explanation about the refusal(s) and/or requirement(s) in this Office action.  See TMEP §§705.02, 709.06.  Although the USPTO does not accept emails as responses to Office actions, emails can be used for informal communications and will be included in the application record.  See 37 C.F.R. §§2.62(c), 2.191; TMEP §§304.01-.02, 709.04-.05. 

 

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.  

 

How to respond.  Click to file a request for reconsideration of this final Office action that fully resolves all outstanding requirements and refusals and/or click to file a timely appeal to the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) with the required filing fee(s).

 

 

/Kristin Williams/

Kristin Williams

Examining Attorney

Law Office 105

(571) 270-1942

kristin.williams@uspto.gov

 

 

 

RESPONSE GUIDANCE

• Missing the response deadline to this letter will cause the application to abandon.  A response or notice of appeal must be received by the USPTO before midnight Eastern Time of the last day of the response period.  TEAS and ESTTA maintenance or unforeseen circumstances could affect an applicant’s ability to timely respond.  

 

• Responses signed by an unauthorized party are not accepted and can cause the application to abandon.  If applicant does not have an attorney, the response must be signed by the individual applicant, all joint applicants, or someone with legal authority to bind a juristic applicant.  If applicant has an attorney, the response must be signed by the attorney.

 

• If needed, find contact information for the supervisor of the office or unit listed in the signature block.

 

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

 

USPTO OFFICIAL NOTICE

 

Office Action (Official Letter) has issued

on December 04, 2019 for

U.S. Trademark Application Serial No. 88348801

 

Your trademark application has been reviewed by a trademark examining attorney.  As part of that review, the assigned attorney has issued an official letter that you must respond to by the specified deadline or your application will be abandoned.  Please follow the steps below.

 

(1)  Read the official letter.

 

(2)  Direct questions about the contents of the Office action to the assigned attorney below. 

 

 

Williams, Kristin

/Kristin Williams/

Kristin Williams

Examining Attorney

Law Office 105

(571) 270-1942

kristin.williams@uspto.gov

 

 

Direct questions about navigating USPTO electronic forms, the USPTO website, the application process, the status of your application, and/or whether there are outstanding deadlines or documents related to your file to the Trademark Assistance Center (TAC).

 

(3)  Respond within 6 months (or earlier, if required in the Office action) from December 04, 2019, using the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS).  The response must be received by the USPTO before midnight Eastern Time of the last day of the response period.  See the Office action for more information about how to respond

 

 

 

GENERAL GUIDANCE

·       Check the status of your application periodically in the Trademark Status & Document Retrieval (TSDR) database to avoid missing critical deadlines.

 

·       Update your correspondence email address, if needed, to ensure you receive important USPTO notices about your application.

 

·       Beware of misleading notices sent by private companies about your application.  Private companies not associated with the USPTO use public information available in trademark registrations to mail and email trademark-related offers and notices – most of which require fees.  All official USPTO correspondence will only be emailed from the domain “@uspto.gov.”