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9 November 2016Trademarks

Trump in second win as rejected ‘Drumpf’ TM gains no response

A rejected trademark application for the term ‘Drumpf’, which is apparently in reference to president-elect Donald Trump’s ancestral name, appears to have attracted no response from the mark’s applicant.

Republican Trump won the 2016 presidential election after surpassing the requisite 270 electoral college votes.

On November 3, WIPR reported that a trademark which had been filed for the term ‘Drumpf’ at the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) would be abandoned if the applicant didn’t respond by November 5.

The mark was filed by Drumpf Industries, based in Delaware, and it is intended to be used as a “provision of a website featuring multimedia content”.

John Oliver, host of TV show “Last Week Tonight”, said that Trump’s ancestral name was Drumpf, with the name later gaining popularity.

Oliver then launched a campaign called “Make Donald Drumpf Again”, which was a play on Trump’s campaign slogan “Make America Great Again”.

In May, Kapil Bhanot, a trademark examining attorney at the USPTO, issued an office action refusing the application.

It 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 didn’t provide written consent for the mark.

Bhanot said that to overcome the refusal, Drumpf Industries must provide written consent, including “a statement of Mr Trump’s consent to applicant’s registration of the identifying matter as a trademark, and not just the party’s consent to permit applicant to use the mark”.

The Delaware company had six months to provide evidence to support the application and respond to the letter.

However, it appears that Drumpf Industries did not respond to the letter by November 5. Despite that, the mark is still active on the USPTO site.

Mark Jaffe, partner at law firm Tor Ekeland, tweeted from his account on November 8 that “in lighter election news, it looks like John Oliver never responded to office refusal to register ‘Drumpf’ trademark”.

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Trademarks
3 November 2016   A rejected trademark that was filed for the term ‘Drumpf’, in reference to US presidential candidate Donald Trump’s alleged ancestral name, will be abandoned if its owner doesn’t respond in the next two days.
Trademarks
3 March 2016   A trademark application has been filed for the term ‘Drumpf’, in reference to US presidential candidate Donald Trump’s alleged ancestral surname.