To: | CHIA WEI CHEN (sales@enjann.com) |
Subject: | U.S. TRADEMARK APPLICATION NO. 88356285 - ESTD 2006 URBAN - N/A |
Sent: | 6/4/2019 1:15:58 PM |
Sent As: | ECOM120@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 Attachment - 13 Attachment - 14 Attachment - 15 Attachment - 16 Attachment - 17 Attachment - 18 Attachment - 19 Attachment - 20 Attachment - 21 Attachment - 22 Attachment - 23 Attachment - 24 Attachment - 25 Attachment - 26 Attachment - 27 Attachment - 28 |
UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE (USPTO)
OFFICE ACTION (OFFICIAL LETTER) ABOUT APPLICANT’S TRADEMARK APPLICATION
U.S. APPLICATION SERIAL NO. 88356285
MARK: ESTD 2006 URBAN
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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: CHIA WEI CHEN
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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: 6/4/2019
The referenced application has been reviewed by the assigned trademark examining attorney. Applicant must respond timely and completely to the issues below. 15 U.S.C. §1062(b); 37 C.F.R. §§2.62(a), 2.65(a); TMEP §§711, 718.03.
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 of Goods Requirement
International Class 025: Belts; Women's clothing, namely, shirts, dresses, skirts, and blouses; Coats; Corsets being clothing; Down jackets; Parkas; Scarfs; Shawls; Shirts; Skirts and dresses
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.
Disclaimer Requirement
In this case, applicant must disclaim the wording “ESTD 2006” because it is not inherently distinctive. These unregistrable terms at best are merely informational about the goods and are commonly used in business; thus the terms do not function as a mark. See 15 U.S.C. §§1051-1053, 1127; In re Boston Beer Co., 198 F.3d 1370, 1372-74, 53 USPQ2d 1056, 1058-59 (Fed. Cir. 1999); In re Aerospace Optics, Inc., 78 USPQ2d 1861, 1864 (TTAB 2006); TMEP §§807.14(a), 1202.04, 1213.03(a), (b).
Determining whether a term functions as a trademark or service mark depends on how such matter would be perceived by the relevant public. In re Eagle Crest, Inc., 96 USPQ2d 1227, 1229 (TTAB 2010); In re Aerospace Optics, Inc., 78 USPQ2d at 1862; TMEP §1202.04. “The more commonly a [term] is used, the less likely that the public will use it to identify only one source and the less likely that it will be recognized by purchasers as a trademark [or service mark].” In re Hulting, 107 USPQ2d 1175, 1177 (TTAB 2013) (quoting In re Eagle Crest, Inc., 96 USPQ2d at 1229); TMEP §1202.04.
The attached evidence from merriam-webster.com shows that “ESTD” means “established” and the attached evidence from amazon.com, t-designbd.com, and rigidindustries.com shows that this wording is commonly used by businesses in the clothing field to indicate how long they have been in business. Because consumers are accustomed to seeing this term commonly used by many businesses to impart information to consumers, they will perceive this term or slogan only as informational matter rather than as a trademark or service mark that identifies the source of applicant’s services.
Additionally, in this case, applicant must disclaim the wording “URBAN” because it is not inherently distinctive. This unregistrable term is at best merely descriptive of a characteristic of applicant’s goods. See 15 U.S.C. §1052(e)(1); DuoProSS Meditech Corp. v. Inviro Med. Devices, Ltd., 695 F.3d 1247, 1251, 103 USPQ2d 1753, 1755 (Fed. Cir. 2012); TMEP §§1213, 1213.03(a).
The attached evidence from oxforddictionaries.com shows that “URBAN” means “Denoting popular black culture in general … ‘urban clothing and street wear’” and, similarly, the attached evidence from vocabulary.com shows that “URBAN” means “carries a suggestion of grittiness––urban style involves darker colors”. Therefore, the term “URBAN” merely describes the characteristic of applicant’s clothing goods having a street wear style.
Therefore, the wording “ESTD 2006” and “URBAN” merely imparts the information that applicant’s business was established in 2006 and describes the characteristic of applicant’s goods having a street wear style.
Applicant may respond to this issue by submitting a disclaimer in the following format:
No claim is made to the exclusive right to use “ESTD 2006” and “URBAN” apart from the mark as shown.
For an overview of disclaimers and instructions on how to satisfy this issue using the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS), see the Disclaimer webpage.
Description of the Mark Requirement
The following description is suggested, if accurate:
The mark consists of the design of three feathers surrounded by three concentric circles. The three feathers are crossed over each other and the top portion of the middle feather is shaded. In the outer circle is the stylized wording “ESTD”, “2006”, and “URBAN”. There is a small shaded circle on both sides of “ESTD” and both sides of “2006”.
Response Guidelines
For this application to proceed, applicant must explicitly address each requirement in this Office action. For a requirement, applicant should set forth the changes or statements. Please see “Responding to Office Actions” and the informational video “Response to Office Action” for more information and tips on responding.
For attorney referral information, applicant may consult the American Bar Association’s Consumers’ Guide to Legal Help; an online directory of legal professionals, such as FindLaw®; or a local telephone directory. The USPTO, however, may not assist an applicant in the selection of a private attorney. 37 C.F.R. §2.11.
/Sandra Snabb/
Examining Attorney
Law Office 120
571-272-4633
Sandra.Snabb@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.