Offc Action Outgoing

United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO)

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

 

 

 

NONFINAL 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).  A link to the appropriate TEAS response form appears at the end of this Office action. 

 

Issue date:  February 25, 2020

 

This Office action is supplemental to and supersedes the previous Office action issued on July 29, 2019 in connection with this application. The assigned trademark examining attorney inadvertently omitted a requirement relevant to the mark in the subject application. See TMEP §§706, 711.02. Specifically, the nature of applicant’s non-downloadable multimedia content is not specified.

 

The trademark examining attorney apologizes for any inconvenience caused by the delay in raising this issue.

 

Applicant must address all issues raised in this Office action, in addition to the issues raised in the Office action dated July 29, 2019.

 

Further, the following requirements have been satisfied: disclaimer requirement and identification of services requirement. See TMEP §713.02. In addition, the prior pending application has been withdrawn. Id.

 

The following is a SUMMARY OF ISSUES that applicant must address:

 

• Identification of Services Requirement – Applies to the Services Specified Therein

 

Applicant must respond to all issues raised in this Office action and the previous July 29, 2019 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).

 

IDENTIFICATION OF SERVICES REQUIREMENT

 

THIS PARTIAL REQUIREMENT APPLIES ONLY TO THE SERVICES SPECIFIED THEREIN

 

The wording “providing on-line, non-downloadable electronic publications, namely, newsletters, magazines, blogs, and non-downloadable multimedia content in the fields of entertainment, gaming, gambling, sports, and sporting events” in the identification of services is indefinite and must be clarified because the type of multimedia content is not specified.  See 37 C.F.R. §2.32(a)(6); TMEP §1402.01.

 

Applicant may substitute the following wording, if accurate (suggestions in bold): 

 

International Class 41: Betting services; gambling services; wagering services; entertainment services, namely, providing on-line computer games; entertainment services, namely, providing a website for on-line gambling, betting, and wagering; online gaming and gambling services, namely, providing a web-based system and online portal for customers to participate in on-line gaming and gambling; gaming services in the nature of sports wagering; providing online non-downloadable game software; organization of electronic game competitions; organization of games; gaming services in the nature of conducting online gambling; entertainment services, namely, providing temporary use of non-downloadable computer games, electronic games, and interactive games; providing temporary use of non-downloadable gaming and gambling software; entertainment services, namely, providing online electronic games; electronic games services provided by means of the internet or global communications network; entertainment services, namely, providing games of chance via the internet; entertainment services in the nature of fantasy sports leagues; providing entertainment information via a website; providing a website featuring information about gaming, sports, sporting events, and gambling; providing sports news; entertainment services, namely, providing virtual environments in which users can interact for recreational, leisure or entertainment purposes; entertainment services, namely, arranging and conducting interactive peer to peer gambling competitions via global computer network, social networking and mobile phones, personal electronic devices, and portable electronic game systems; providing on-line, non-downloadable electronic publications, namely, newsletters, magazines, blogs, and non-downloadable multimedia content being {indicate the type of media, e.g., videos, webcasts, and podcasts} in the fields of entertainment, gaming, gambling, sports, and sporting events; educational services, namely, providing classes, workshops, seminars, and online instruction in the fields of gaming, sports, sporting events, and gambling; entertainment services, namely, contest and incentive award programs designed to reward program participants who engage in gaming and gambling; organizing and conducting sporting and entertainment events in the nature of sports wagering, sport competitions, athletic events, live musical, comedy and dramatic performances, the proceeds of which are donated to charity; entertainment services in the nature of organizing, arranging and hosting social entertainment events; entertainment services, namely, provision of on-going multimedia programs in the field of television and video entertainment featuring sports, sporting events, gambling, music commentary and news distributed via various platforms across multiple forms of transmission media; virtual reality game services provided on-line from a computer network

 

Applicant may amend the identification to clarify or limit the services, but not to broaden or expand the 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 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.

 

RESPONSE GUIDELINES

 

For this application to proceed, applicant must explicitly address each refusal and/or requirement in this Office action.  For a refusal, applicant may provide written arguments and evidence against the refusal, and may have other response options if specified above.  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.

 

If applicant does not timely respond to this Office action, the following services will be deleted from the application:  providing on-line, non-downloadable electronic publications, namely, newsletters, magazines, blogs, and non-downloadable multimedia content in the fields of entertainment, gaming, gambling, sports, and sporting events.  See 37 C.F.R. §2.65(a); TMEP §718.02(a). 

 

In such case, the application will then proceed with the following services only:  betting services; gambling services; wagering services; entertainment services, namely, providing on-line computer games; entertainment services, namely, providing a website for on-line gambling, betting, and wagering; online gaming and gambling services, namely, providing a web-based system and online portal for customers to participate in on-line gaming and gambling; gaming services in the nature of sports wagering; providing online non-downloadable game software; organization of electronic game competitions; organization of games; gaming services in the nature of conducting online gambling; entertainment services, namely, providing temporary use of non-downloadable computer games, electronic games, and interactive games; providing temporary use of non-downloadable gaming and gambling software; entertainment services, namely, providing online electronic games; electronic games services provided by means of the internet or global communications network; entertainment services, namely, providing games of chance via the internet; entertainment services in the nature of fantasy sports leagues; providing entertainment information via a website; providing a website featuring information about gaming, sports, sporting events, and gambling; providing sports news; entertainment services, namely, providing virtual environments in which users can interact for recreational, leisure or entertainment purposes; entertainment services, namely, arranging and conducting interactive peer to peer gambling competitions via global computer network, social networking and mobile phones, personal electronic devices, and portable electronic game systems; educational services, namely, providing classes, workshops, seminars, and online instruction in the fields of gaming, sports, sporting events, and gambling; entertainment services, namely, contest and incentive award programs designed to reward program participants who engage in gaming and gambling; organizing and conducting sporting and entertainment events in the nature of sports wagering, sport competitions, athletic events, live musical, comedy and dramatic performances, the proceeds of which are donated to charity; entertainment services in the nature of organizing, arranging and hosting social entertainment events; entertainment services, namely, provision of on-going multimedia programs in the field of television and video entertainment featuring sports, sporting events, gambling, music commentary and news distributed via various platforms across multiple forms of transmission media; virtual reality game services provided on-line from a computer network. 

 

See TMEP §718.02(a). 

 

USPTO changed federal trademark rules to rename TEAS Reduced Fee (RF) application to “TEAS Standard” and to eliminate TEAS Regular application form.  Current TEAS RF applicants will generally need to continue to meet similar application requirements.  See Changes to the Trademark Rules of Practice to Mandate Electronic Filing Final Rule and Correction, 84 Fed. Reg. 37,081, 68,045, 69,330 (published July 31, 2019, effective Feb. 15, 2020) (codified at 37 C.F.R. pts. 2 & 7).  And current TEAS Regular applicants must now provide an email address when submitting documents through TEAS, will generally be sent correspondence electronically from the USPTO, and will pay a filing fee of $275 per class (instead of $400) when adding a class.  For more information about these changes, see the Mandatory Electronic Filing webpage. 

 

How to respond.  Click to file a response to this nonfinal Office action.    

 

 

/Marcya N. Betts/

Marcya N. Betts

Examining Attorney

Law Office 106

(571) 272-4913

Marcya.Betts@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 February 25, 2020 for

U.S. Trademark Application Serial No. 88421226

 

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. 

 

 

/Marcya N. Betts/

Marcya N. Betts

Examining Attorney

Law Office 106

(571) 272-4913

Marcya.Betts@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 February 25, 2020, 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.”