The Briefing: The Supreme Court Limits the Reach of The Lanham Act
The U.S. Trademark Use Requirement and Associated Risks and Strategies for Chinese Applicants
A recent decision by the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board in Tidal Music AS v. The Rose Digital Entertainment LLC (Opp. No. 91232127) confirms the importance of ensuring proper use of a service mark before filing an...more
When seeking particular services, consumers are often drawn into a business based on branding and advertising found near the location – whether by signage on or around the establishment, or by glimpses of the services being...more
1. The Difference Between a Trademark, Service Mark, and Trade Dress. A trademark is any word, term, phase, symbol, logo, design, shape, tag line, background, color, scent, sound, device, or combination thereof that...more
The October issue of Sterne Kessler's MarkIt to MarketTM newsletter discusses use in commerce as applied to mobile applications and services, outlines best practices for ensuring your business owns artwork and textual works...more
The Redskins Lose Again (Off the Field)- A federal District Court affirmed the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board’s (TTAB) ruling that “Redskins” cannot be registered as a trademark for use in connection with a...more
Brand owners have embraced hashtags (words or phrases preceded by a hash or pound sign - #) as a way to both engage consumers and track social media posts regarding a specific product or topic. Not surprisingly, the...more
Addressing for the first time whether the offering of a service was sufficient “use in commerce” under the Lanham Act, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board’s (TTAB)...more
Registration Cancelled Where Services Related to Mark Not Provided - Playdom, Inc. filed a petition to cancel Couture’s mark, arguing that the registration was void because Couture did not use the mark in commerce as of...more
In order to register a service mark—a trademark used to promote and sell services, as opposed to goods—with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), the owner of the service mark must be using the mark in...more
On March 2, 2015, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued its first-ever ruling addressing use requirements for registering service marks. The court held that offering a service, without the actual rendering...more
In Couture v. Playdom, Inc., the Federal Circuit held that the use of a mark on a website to offer services is not use in commerce sufficient to support an actual-use service mark application. As a result, the Court affirmed...more