Sony Risks PTO Abandonment of 8K HDR Logo Unveiled Publicly at CES
Sony let lapse Monday’s six-month deadline for responding to the Patent and Trademark Office’s refusal to trademark the 8K HDR logo unveiled publicly for the first time at CES Monday on two-models of 8K TVs under the Bravia Master Series…
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Z9G designation (see 1901080038), agency records show. PTO examining attorney Darryl Spruill refused the application in November 2017 and again July 6 on grounds that 8K HDR was too generic a description of Sony’s goods. On Sony’s argument that the black and gold octagonal design of the logo made it distinctive enough to qualify as a trademark, Spruill disagreed: “The design portion of the mark is a combination of merely non-distinctive geometric shapes that do not serve as an inherently distinctive source indicator. As stated previously, most common geometric shapes, such as circles, ovals, triangles, diamonds, or stars, when used as a background for word or letter marks are not considered inherently distinctive.” PTO rules give applicants six months to respond to a refusal or risk having the application declared abandoned. Sony didn’t comment Wednesday.