Gerben IP’s Trademark Blog

The Basics, Trademark Filing

How to Respond to a Notice of Abandonment – Failure to Respond Timely to Office Action

One of the hardest parts of the trademark registration process is meeting all of the deadlines required by the United States Patent and Trademark Office. Failure to meet these deadlines may result in the permanent abandonment of your application. However, if you received a “Notice of Abandonment,” you still may have an opportunity to revive the application and save it […]

In The News, Sports

Joel Embiid Obtains Trademark for “The Process”

   Joel Embiid has obtained a trademark registration for “The Process.” In the registration certificate that was issued by the USPTO on May 14th, 2019, you can see that Joel filed this application back in October of 2016. Now, nearly three years later, the trademark has registered. This particular registration is for a brand of clothing called “The Process,” but […]

By Industry Type, How To's, Industries, Toy Brands

How to Use Trademarks to Build Your Toy Brand

Children, unlike their parents and grandparents, are often the most brand loyal customers around. Studies have shown that brand awareness can begin as early as two-years-old, and it’s often hard to break a loyalty once it’s been established. For people in the toy industry, this means that a strong brand is the key to success. While several factors can help grow […]

General

Has Jimmy Butler Registered His Jimmy Buckets Trademarks?

If you are watching the NBA playoffs you probably have seen all the ‘JIMMY BUCKETS’ signs popping up around the Wells Fargo Center.  This leads to the question: “Has Jimmy Butler registered his Jimmy Buckets trademark?” And the answer is that Jimmy Butler has filed seven trademark applications for Jimmy Buckets, but none of them have matured into a registration. […]

European Union Trademarks, How To's, International, International Registration

6 Steps to Register a Trademark in the EU

A registered trademark is a valuable asset for any brand. Your U.S. trademark, however, only protects you in legal disputes within the United States. To gain legal protection for your mark outside the U.S., you must register your trademark in other countries. Whether your online retail store reaches customers in Italy or your software firm is looking to expand to Paris, […]

By Industry Type, How To's, Industries, Technology, Trademark Protection

How to Protect Your Trademark in the Internet of Things Industry

With the rise of the Internet of Things industry, which includes physical objects that connect to the internet and interact with other things, it is becoming more and more important for companies to understand the proper use and application of trademarks. There are two main things to consider when you’re developing and launching your own product in this industry. 1. […]

In The News, Sports

NFL Files Trademark for Duluth Eskimos

An interesting trademark filing was recently made by the NFL for ‘Duluth Eskimos’ on April 25th. So who are the “Duluth Eskimos”?  The Duluth Eskimos were a football team put together at the very northern tip of Minnesota back in the 1920s. You can read all about them on Wikipedia.  Also, ironically, this is a popular exhibit in a new […]

In The News, Pop Culture

Nike, Inc Files Trademark Application for Cryptokicks Cryptocurrency

Nike, Inc recently made an interesting trademark filing for Cryptokicks, for a brand of cryptocurrency. Nike’s application includes a list of products, but the main headline is the language which states that Cryptokicks is for “providing a digital currency or digital token for use by members of an online community”. Essentially, this is a cryptocurrency called Cryptokicks and all the […]

In The News, Pop Culture

“Magic: The Gathering” Trademark Denied

In 2013, the creators of the “Magic: The Gathering” card game applied to register a symbol of an arrow. The registration was specifically for card games, trading card games, playing cards, and accessories. The specimen that they provided alleging proof of use only appears in one location on the playing cards. It doesn’t appear on packaging or any other places. […]

Athletics, In The News, Industries, International, Sports

USPTO Refuses Luka Dončić’s Trademark Applications

  Luka Doncic, the potential Rookie of the Year candidate from the Dallas Mavericks, has had his trademark applications for ‘Matador’ and ‘El Matador’ denied by the Patent and Trademark Office. Luka’s trademark application was denied because there’s about a dozen other Matador trademarks that exist across a variety of goods and services that Luka applied for. In this case, […]

Canadian Trademarks, International

4 Reasons to File a Trademark in Canada

As a U.S. trademark owner, you understand that the legal protections provided to you by a federally registered trademark in the United States are essential to protecting your brand and growing your business. Those protections, however, only apply to trademark disputes in the United States. To gain protections internationally, you must register with countries where you plan to do business now […]

In The News, Sports

USPTO Refuses Augusta National’s Trademark Filing for a Green Jacket

Augusta National filed a trademark application in February 2019 for an actual green jacket. Despite already owning trademark registrations on the phrase “green jacket,” Augusta National had not yet applied for the actual jacket itself. When making a trademark filing on a trade dress such as this, you need to submit a technical drawing. On the drawing they submitted, you […]

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