The Subject Matter of Trademarks Quiz

PDF page 154: As discussed, there are four types of trademarks: trademarks, service marks, certification marks, and collective marks. But what does it mean to say that a trademark may be a “word [or phrase], name, symbol [or design], or device.” The answers may in some cases surprise you.

PDF page 154: As discussed, there are four types of trademarks: trademarks, service marks, certification marks, and collective marks. But what does it mean to say that a trademark may be a “word [or phrase], name, symbol [or design], or device.” The answers may in some cases surprise you.

PDF page 155: There is little confusion about what is meant by a trademarkable word, phrase, or name. The only point to remember here is that words, names, and phrases that are simply descriptive of the goods or services with

PDF page 155: which they are associated do not necessarily qualify for registration as a trademark. They must be distinctive and indicate the origin of a product or service. What is meant by distinctive—and how distinctive they must be—will be discussed in the next section.

PDF page 155: which they are associated do not necessarily qualify for registration as a trademark. They must be distinctive and indicate the origin of a product or service. What is meant by distinctive—and how distinctive they must be—will be discussed in the next section.

PDF page 155: In the United States, therefore, trademarks can include almost anything that carries distinctive meaning and identifies the origin of products and services. This includes slogans, letters, numbers, logos, three-dimensional

PDF page 155: designs—even colors, scents, and sounds that indicate the source of a good or service to consumers.

PDF page 155: A trademarkable symbol can be a number. The number 5, for example, is a trademarked symbol of Chanel No. 5 perfume (No. 73788555). So is the number 31, which is the trademarked symbol of Baskin-Robbins 31 Flavors (No. 72172718).

PDF page 156: enough and do not indicate the origin of the goods in question. Regular gas, also known as “87 octane,” also cannot be trademarked because it doesn’t tell you whether that gas comes from Exxon, Shell, or BP.

PDF page 156: trademarking of mere part numbers, model numbers, or grades, because these are not distinctive

PDF page 156: enough and do not indicate the origin of the goods in question. Regular gas, also known as “87 octane,” also cannot be trademarked because it doesn’t tell you whether that gas comes from Exxon, Shell, or BP.

PDF page 156: Yet despite the above, one of the most iconic trademarked numbers is 501. Originally, the number 501 was simply the lot number Levi’s assigned to the famous copper-riveted waist overalls. But over time, 501 acquired meaning in the minds of consumers and came to be very strongly associated with Levi’s brand jeans. How otherwise un-trademarkable symbols (or words and designs) can acquire secondary (trademark) meaning will be discussed in the next section.

PDF page 156: Yet despite the above, one of the most iconic trademarked numbers is 501. Originally, the number 501 was simply the lot number Levi’s assigned to the famous copper-riveted waist overalls. But over time, 501 acquired meaning in the minds of consumers and came to be very strongly associated with Levi’s brand jeans. How otherwise un-trademarkable symbols (or words and designs) can acquire secondary (trademark) meaning will be discussed in the next section.

PDF page 157: are associated, and indeed, there are approximately 700 trademarked sounds registered at the USPTO. These include Tarzan’s Yell, the THX theme heard at the beginning of a movie, MGM’s roaring lion, America Online’s “You’ve got mail” announcement, the sequence of chimes heard with the display of the NBC logo on TV, and, naturally, the sound of a duck quacking “Aflac!” for the American Family Life Assurance Company.

PDF page 158: Trade dress, on the other hand, refers to the overall appearance of a product or service that indicates its source. Trade dress can include features such as size, shape, color or color combinations, texture, graphics, or even particular sales techniques. The key to claiming trade dress protection is that the attributes must be distinctive. For example, Taco Cabana has trademarked its distinctive and “festive eating atmosphere having interior dining and patio areas decorated with artifacts, bright colors, paintings and murals,” and won an infringement case against a competitor restaurant called Two Pesos. By creating a theme that was similar to