“Indian Trade Mark Statistics for September 2017 (Second Week), TATA Trade Mark Infringement, Los Pollos Hermanos Trade Mark, Hinder Rock Band and Wingler in a Legal Battle over Hinder, Kolkatti Jewelry to be Applied for GI Registration and more,” brought to you by Trade Mark Attorneys at BananaIP (BIP) Counsels.
TRADE MARK QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“Within every brand is a product, but not every product is a brand” — David Ogilvy
INDIAN TRADE MARK STATISTICS
The productivity of the Indian Trade Mark Office has been considerably low compared to the previous week’s status. The total number of applications disposed through show cause hearings decreased by seven percent (7%). The total number of trade mark applications examined decreased by eleven percent (11%). However, the total number of registrations granted increased by fifty percent (50%).
| Particulars | Last Week | This Week | Change in % |
| Total Trademark Applications Examined by Trademark Office | 6988 | 6187 | A decrease of 11% |
| Total Applications Disposed Through Show Cause Hearings | 961 | 888 | A decrease of 7% |
| Total Applications Published in the Trademark Journal | 12092 | 6337 | A decrease of 47% |
| Total Registrations Granted | 6693 | 10092 | An increase of 50% |
| Total Hearing Notices Issued | 3935 | 1725 | A decrease of 56 % |
| Total Renewal Notices Issued | 2689 | 2713 | An increase of .8% |
Total Number of New Applications Received from September 02, 2017 to September 08, 2017
| Sr. No | Jurisdiction | New Applications | Examined | Published | Registered |
| 1 | AHMEDABAD | 619 | 334 | 717 | 1327 |
| 2 | CHENNAI | 942 | 508 | 970 | 1913 |
| 3 | DELHI | 2087 | 1006 | 2399 | 2999 |
| 4 | KOLKATA | 312 | 179 | 281 | 713 |
| 5 | MUMBAI | 1302 | 643 | 1401 | 2244 |
| Total | 5262 | 2670 | 5768 | 9196 |
Trademark Statistics from January 01, 2017 to September 12, 2017
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Filed – 174792
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Examined – 132978
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Published – 130919
- Total Number of Trademark Applications Registered – 217783
INTERESTING TRADE MARKS
LOS POLLOS HERMANOS Trade Mark
The fictional restaurant ‘LOS POLLOS HERMANOS’ in the Emmy winning American television series Breaking Bad is the subject of a trade mark application at the USPTO by Sony Pictures Television, Inc. The mark has been filed for registration in September 2016, under Classes 18, 21 and 25, which mainly deal with merchandising goods. The mark has been applied on an intent to use basis.
INDIAN TRADE MARK UPDATES
Tata Sons Limited (Plaintiff) vs. Rajbir Jindal (Defendant)
Subject- Trade Mark Infringement
Brief Facts – Plaintiff is the registered trade mark owner of the mark TATA as well as other TATA formative trade marks in several classes including Class 31. The Plaintiff has been extensively and continuously using the mark TATA since 1868 and has acquired the status of a well-known trade mark. The Plaintiff’s associate company Tata Chemicals Limited is engaged in the business of poultry and cattle feed. In 2015, the Plaintiff, through market resources, learned that the Defendant is engaged in marketing and distribution of animal feed and other allied products under the mark TATA NO.1, and filed a trade mark infringement case before the Delhi High Court.
Judgment: The Court opined that the Defendant’s adoption of the mark TATA as a prefix for animal feed or any other product amounts to trade mark infringement. The court issued a permanent injunction restraining the Defendant from using the TATA trade mark.
5% GST on Packaged Foods
Under the new GST regime, packaged foods which are sold under a brand name without a registered trade mark are also likely to pay a 5% Goods and Service Tax (GST). Initially, only packaged foods with a registered trade mark attracted a 5% levy due to which hundreds of brands had applied for deregistration to evade the tax.
INTERNATIONAL TRADE MARK UPDATES
Hinder Trade Mark Infringement
Hinder, an Oklahoma based rock band, has filed a suit in the US federal court against Austin John Winkler, the former lead singer of the band for trade mark infringement. The suit claims that Winkler who has left the band in 2013 is currently promoting his own recordings and performances by the “unlawful use and exploitation of the Hinder Trademark”. The singer is yet to take any action in response to the lawsuit.
Taylor Swift Files New Trade Mark Application
The famous American singer Taylor Swift has recently filed new trade mark applications with the USPTO. The Grammy award recipient has filed for the phrases ‘The old Taylor can’t come to the phone right now’ as well as ‘Look What You Made Me Do’, both of which are lines from her upcoming new Album Reputation. The application has been filed under Classes 09, 16, 18, 25, 26 and 41 by TAS Rights Management, LLC, which is owned by the singer.
TRADE MARK LICENSING UPDATES
Smiley Teams with Crocs for Summer Collection
The popular Smiley World has teamed up with the footwear brand Crocs to release an exclusive line of expressive smiley icon Jibbitz charms on Crocs shoes. Smiley World, the original Smiley brand is the latest big licensing name to co-create with Crocs. The Jibbitz collection can be found across all high street stores as well as online.
GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION UPDATES
Kolkatti Jewellery to be applied for GI Registration
The West Bengal Government in association with the Gems and Jewelry Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) has initiated the process of obtaining a GI registration for Kolkatti, the proposed name for the unique Kolkata made jewelry. The lightweight handcrafted jewelry has a major demand in the Middle East, US, and UK markets. IIT Kharagpur is providing the technical help in preparing the documents for acquiring registration.
The Name BananaIP
We recently carried an article written by Dr. Kalyan C. Kankanala about naming our firm BananaIP. You can read the article here
We in the trade mark team of BananaIP are proud of the mark, BananaIP, as it is not only arbitrary and helps us register it easily, but also possesses the qualities for quick and wide spread association among the general public. Within just three and half years of its promotion, we are very happy to report that BananaIP is well known and well recognized among IP professionals, businesses, creators and inventors, and the trade mark played an important role in achieving the same.
BIP TIP OF THE WEEK
Trade Marks and Competitors
A successful trade mark pulls consumers towards it and plays an important role in business success and profitability. Competitors, therefore, find popular trade marks attractive for adoption for their products and services. It is important for businesses to take action at the right time to prevent competitors from riding on the good will created by a popular brand. This can be easily accomplished by actions that fall short of full fledged litigation.
Author: BIP Trade Mark Attorneys
BIP’s Trade Mark Attorneys are among the leading experts in the field. They work with clients such as PEPS, Dharma Productions, Essilor, Samsung and IIT, Bombay, with respect to trade mark filing, prosecution, registration, management, licensing, franchising, merchandizing and strategy.
The weekly trade mark news initiative is a part of their pro bono work, and is aimed at spreading trade mark awareness. You are free to share the news with appropriate attribution and backlink to the source.
If you have any questions, you may write to BIP’s Trade Mark Attorneys – contact@bananaip.com
