‘Jesus Loves Nachos’, Apollo Infringement, Captain Crunch Bites into Trade Mark, and other News

“Indian Trade Mark Statistics for March (Second Week) 2018, Jesus Loves Nachos Officially Trade Marked, Roald Dahl Monopoly Game, Karnataka Board Coffee GI and more” brought to you by the 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 Indian Trade Mark Office had a slow week in comparison to the previous week. The total number of applications published in the trade mark journal has decreased by sixteen percent (16%). There has been an increase of thirty-two percent (32%) in the total number of applications examined.

Weekly Indian Trade Mark Statistics

Particulars Last Week This Week Change in %
Total Trade Mark Applications Examined by Trade Mark Office 6972 7920 An increase of 14%
Total Applications Disposed through Show Cause Hearings 6223 8196 An increase of 32%
Total Applications Published in the Trade Mark Journal 12238 10315 A decrease of 16%
Total Registrations Granted 7524 4670 A decrease of 38%
Total Hearing Notices Issued 14179 10682 A decrease of 25%
Total Renewals Notices Issued 1523 1413 A decrease of 7%

Trade Mark Statistics by Office

Total Number of New Applications Received from March 08th to March 14th, 2018

Sr. No Jurisdiction New Applications Examined Published Registered
1 AHMEDABAD 819 517 864 559
2 CHENNAI 1074 709 1969 747
3 DELHI 2103 1436 3251 1696
4 KOLKATA 311 245 397 271
5 MUMBAI 1349 797 2519 1126
Total   5656 3704 9000 4399

Yearly Trade Mark Statistics

Trade Mark Statistics from January 01st to March 14th, 2018

  • Total Number of Trade Mark Applications Filed – 58006
  • Total Number of Trade Mark Applications Examined –  36776
  • Total Number of Trade Mark Applications Published – 87632
  • Total Number of Trade Mark Applications Registered 64265

INTERESTING TRADE MARK

Captain Crunch Delighted Over Trade Mark

The Quaker Oats Company, an American food product major, has filed a trade mark for CAP’N CRUNCH DELIGHTS with the USPTO. The mark has been filed in October, 2015 under class 30 for sweet dough-enrobed foods consisting of balls of dough with sweet fillings. It received registration in August of 2016. Captain Crunch is a well-known breakfast cereal that was introduced in America in the 1960’s.

INDIAN TRADE MARK UPDATES

M/S.  Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd (Plaintiff) v. Sri Sai Apollo Pharmacy (Defendant)

A suit was filed by the Plaintiff for a permanent injunction due to passing off and infringement of the Plaintiff’s registered mark ‘APOLLO’ and its related marks by the Defendant. The Plaintiff is one of the largest multi-specialty private sector hospital in India and is the registered holder of various marks such as “Apollo”, “Apollo Clinic”, Apollo Pharmacy”, “Apollo Hospital” in seven different trade mark classes in India. Defendants were said to be using a deceptively similar mark ‘SRI SAI APOLLO PHARMACY’ in relation to pharmacy services. The Court in this order noted, based on the evidence adduced, that the Plaintiff’s mark has acquired widespread reputation and is very popular among the public. The Court held that the Defendants have dishonestly and with a mala fide intent used the mark ‘SRI SAI APOLLO PHARMACY’ to ride on the goodwill of the Plaintiff and is a clear case of trade mark infringement and passing off of the Plaintiff’s registered trade mark.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE MARK UPDATES

‘Jesus Loves Nachos’ Officially Trade Marked

Whether a favorite or not, the famous slogan ‘Jesus loves nachos’ etched on a rusty railway bridge in the small Australian town of Katherine has been trade marked officially. The town councilor was the driving force behind the graffiti catch phrase being trade marked, achieved after an eight month struggle. The graffiti which has existed since the 1980s has become synonymous with Katherine and was trade marked to help boost tourism to the town.

TRADE MARK LICENSING UPDATES

Let The Games Begin!

The Roald Dahl Story Company joined hands with Winning Moves to create a Roald Dahl Monopoly game board set. The game which is set to be released this month features Sir Quentin Blake’s iconic illustrations and offers its players new tokens which are said to be inspired from Dahl’s titles such as Matilda’s books, a Wonka candy, etc.

Good News for all the MLB Fans

Major League Baseball (MLB) is expanding its digital presence by way of a new deal with Facebook and an extended partnership with YouTube. YouTube TV will now be serving as the presenting sponsor of the 2018 and 2019 MLB World Series, the annual season finale, and shall provide fans an expanded coverage of the games along with the inclusion of the MLB Network in its channel lineup. Additionally, YouTube TV will incorporate MLB players in its promotional efforts and advertisements on TV and social media channels.

Redbubble and Retail Monster Partner to Expand Portfolio

Online print on demand marketplace Redbubble has announced a new partnership with brand extension and licensing company Retail Monster. This new tie up will assist Redbubble gain access to new licensing teams and brands, while Retail Monster will be able to enhance its ability to connect its clients to a vast network of artists and fans.

GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATION UPDATES

Brewing Over GI Tag

The Coffee Board, Bangalore has applied for new applications for ‘Coorg Arabica’, ‘Chikmagalur Arabic’ and ‘Araku Valley Arabica’ coffee. The applications have been filed in January of 2018 under class 30 for coffee. These coffee varieties are a specialty of Baba Budangiri, amongst other cities such as Chickmagalur, Wayanad and Travancore.

BANANAIP TIP OF THE WEEK

It is possible to have a mark registered in a class even if another registered mark exists in the same class if that registered mark is considered descriptive in nature and therefore not inherently distinctive.  However this would not be a recommend strategy to adopt unless you have no choice but to use the mark as it is necessary to represent your goods or services.
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 the IITs 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 [email protected]
 

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