Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Denies Apple's "Multi-Touch" Proposed Mark

The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) affirms examining attorney's decision that the term "Multi-Touch"  is merely descriptive of Apple's goods, and was not persuaded that the proposed mark had acquired distintiveness as required for registration under the provisions of Trademark Act § 2(f), 15 U.S.C. § 1052(f).

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Non-Traditional Trademarks: Protect What Makes You Distinctive

With the 2011 college football season upon us, another reminder of the importance of protecting non-traditional trademarks came to mind.  Boise State University’s blue turf is not only something that attracts student athletes and college football viewers alike, but it is also protected as a United States Patent and Trademark Office registered trademark.  The design mark depicts a stadium with blue turf and has protected it as used in connection with “entertainment services, namely, the presentation of intercollegiate sporting events and sports exhibitions rendered in a stadium, and through the media of radio and television broadcasts and the global communications network.”  Boise State University was able to acquire this non-traditional trademark registration based upon its longstanding use of the blue turf to distinguish its services from that of others, such as other universities.  This trademark registration isn’t only a novelty item that the university can point to as further support of the importance of its blue turf, but it has also relied upon the same in opposing use of similar turf by other universities.  In fact, Boise State and the University of New Haven have engaged in a trademark battle over the blue turf.