‘Drumpf’ trademark application refused by USPTO

The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has rejected a trademark application for ‘Drumpf’ which allegedly references US presidential candidate Donald Trump’s ancestral name.

Kapil Bhanot, trademark examining attorney at the USPTO, refused the application by Delaware-based company Drumpf Industries.

In March this year, WIPR reported that a trademark application for the term ‘Drumpf’ had been filed at the USPTO. It sought to cover the “provision of a website featuring multimedia content”.

The application followed a campaign called “ Make Donald Drumpf Again”, which was launched by “Last Week Tonight” host John Oliver.

The mark was refused because “the applied-for mark consists of or comprises a name, portrait, or signature identifying a particular living individual whose written consent to register the mark is not of record.”

Trump hasn’t provided written consent for the mark.

Further, Bhanot said that the “general public would readily associate the applied-for mark, Drumpf, with Donald Trump.”

Drumpf Industries has six months to respond to the letter and must submit evidence in support of the registration, otherwise it will be abandoned.

The decision was published on May 5 and can be viewed in full here.