Can generic words be trademarked?

Under the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. § 1051 et seq., generic terms may not be registered as trademarks, but terms that are “merely descriptive” of goods or services may be registered if the public has come to understand them as identifying the trademark owner's goods or services.
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Can a common word be trademarked?

Common words and phrases can be trademarked if the person or company seeking the trademark can demonstrate that the phrase has acquired a distinctive secondary meaning apart from its original meaning. That secondary meaning must be one that identifies the phrase with a particular good or service.
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What words Cannot be trademarked?

What Can't Be Trademarked?
  • Proper names or likenesses without consent from the person.
  • Generic terms, phrases, or the like.
  • Government symbols or insignia.
  • Vulgar or disparaging words or phrases.
  • The likeness of a U.S. President, former or current.
  • Immoral, deceptive, or scandalous words or symbols.
  • Sounds or short motifs.
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Are generic words eligible for trademark protection?

Generic terms are never eligible for trademark protection because they refer to a general class of products rather than indicating a unique source. A mark may be generic ab initio and refused registration, or it may become generic over time through use.
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What is considered generic trademark?

A generic trademark, also known as a genericized trademark or proprietary eponym, is a trademark or brand name that, because of its popularity or significance, has become the generic term for, or synonymous with, a general class of products or services, usually against the intentions of the trademark's owner.
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Can Generic Words be Tradmarked? | You Ask, Andrei Answers



What is it called when a brand becomes the commonly used word?

The process is known as genericization, and in some cases, it can result in companies losing their trademark. Escalator and kerosene are some lesser-known examples of brand names that have turned into ordinary words.
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What happens to a trademark if it becomes too generic?

Genericide – What happens once a trademark becomes generic? Unfortunately for the trademark owner, once a trademark becomes generic it loses its trademark protection and it becomes available to the public.
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What kind of words can be trademarked?

Phrases, words, symbols, sounds, and even colors are all eligible for trademark protection. Anything that identifies your brand and is used to distinguish your company or goods/services from other companies can be trademarked.
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What is not protected by trademark?

Generic terms are not protected by trademark because they refer to a general class of products rather than indicating a unique source.
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Which of the following trademarks are not legally determined as generic?

Trademark Trivia: Which of the following trademarks has NOT become (legally) generic? Answer: a. Velcro ! Velcro is still a federally registered trademark whereas escalator, yo-yo, and thermos have all lost their trademark status due to genericide.
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Why did aspirin lose its trademark?

Aspirin comes from “acetyl” and Spirsäure, a German name for salicylic acid. Its time as a trademarked word would be short — in 1917 many of Bayer's U.S. assets were confiscated as a result of World War 1, including its patents and trademarks.
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Is Kleenex still a trademark?

You probably already know that Xerox and Kleenex are registered trademarks even though people frequently joke about how generic those terms are. Generic in that they're used by many people to talk about a whole category of products and not just a specific brand of product.
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What are generic brands?

The term generic brand refers to a type of consumer product on the market that lacks a widely recognized name or logo because it typically isn't advertised. Generic brands are usually less expensive than their brand name counterparts due to their lack of promotion, which can inflate the cost of a good or service.
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Can descriptive marks be trademarked?

Descriptive marks are those trademarks or service marks that only describe the products or services to which they are applied. Marks that are merely descriptive are not protected or accorded trademark rights. This is because they do not identify and distinguish the source of products or services.
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Is generic same as name-brand?

A generic drug is a medication with the exact same active ingredient as the brand-name drug, is taken the same way and offers the same effect. They do not need to contain the same inactive ingredients as the name-brand product and they can only be sold after the brand-name drug's patent expires.
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What is the difference between generic and brand names?

While brand name drug refers to the name giving by the producing company, generic drug refers to a drug produced after the active ingredient of the brand name drug. Generic drugs will, however, be sold under different brand names, but will contain the same active ingredients as the brand-name drug.
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Is generic as good as name-brand?

Are generic name drugs less effective? No. Generic medications are just as effective as brand-name drugs. According to the FDA, drug makers must prove that generic medications can be substituted for brand-name drugs and offer the same benefits as their brand-name counterparts.
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Is Chapstick a generic trademark?

Chapstick is so popular that there are a number of websites devoted to "chapstick addiction." Pfizer still has a registered trademark on this iconic product, yet the brand has become a genericized trademark over time.
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Is Coke trademarked?

Coca Cola Word Mark

The name Coca-Cola is a registered trademark, and the USPTO recorded its first use in 1898.
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Is jello trademarked?

The original Jell-O gelatin dessert (genericized as jello) is the signature of the brand. Jell-O is a registered trademark of Kraft Heinz and is based in Chicago, Illinois. U.S.
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Is Super Glue trademarked?

“Super Glue” is now generic but Super Glue Corporation/Pacer Technology holds the trademark to “The Original Super Glue” and you can bet they plan to make sure it sticks there like its product.
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Is Hoover trademarked?

HOOVER® is a registered trade mark belonging to Candy Hoover Group. It denotes a particular brand of vacuum cleaner, made and sold by a particular business. The term is not 'generic' to describe all vacuum cleaners.
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Is Zoom a generic?

People are using the term generically to mean videoconferencing, but they also know that Zoom is a particular platform, distinct from Skype, Google and so on. As consumers become savvier about brand choices, especially in the digital age, the phenomenon of genericide occurs less, as has been the trend in recent years.
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Is the word Skittles trademarked?

In truth, we don't enter the "candy" sense of skittle—that's a trademarked word. Unlike some of the trademarks we do enter, such as such as Kleenex, Frisbee, and Dumpster, the word skittles has not shown prolonged and substantial use as a general term.
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Is taste the rainbow trademarked?

TASTE THE RAINBOW Trademark of Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company - Registration Number 5073429 - Serial Number 87069704 :: Justia Trademarks.
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