US Patent Office denies Apple 'multi-touch' trademark

Apple Inc. has been denied a trademark application for the term “Multi-Touch" by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), an Apple enthusiast site reported this week. MacRumors said the USPTO board has upheld its own lawyer’s denial of Apple’s initial trademark application when the company appealed to the USPTO Appeal Board. It said the trademark attorney pointed out the term “multitouch" has taken on generic meaning, being used by many publications to describe the touchscreen technology on Android phones, tablets, and notebooks. Apple had originally applied for the trademark on January 9, 2007, the day when it introduced its iPhone smartphone. The report said the examining attorney questioned whether Apple, the applicant, submitted sufficient evidence to establish acquired distinctiveness of this highly descriptive term. It noted there is a list of items that can determine if a mark has “acquired distinctiveness." including sales success, length and exclusivity of use, and advertising expenditures. But the board ruled that Apple has not met the burden to be granted a trademark on multi-touch, MacRumors said. — TJD, GMA News