Applicant maintained that the guinea coinage was never circulated in the United States, and that the Examining Attorney relied mainly on foreign websites to explain the meaning of the term "guinea." The Board was not impressed, particularly because the relevant American consumers are coin collectors, not the general public.
Moreover, the Examining Attorney established that:
[e]ven after the coin ceased to circulate, the name guinea was long used to indicate the amount of 21 shillings (£1.05 in decimalised currency). The guinea had an aristocratic overtone; professional fees and payment for land, horses, art, bespoke tailoring, furniture and other luxury items were often quoted in guineas until a couple of years after decimalisation in 1971. It was similarly used in Australia until that country went to decimal currency in 1966.
Applicant's website offers a "2015 One Guinea Gold Proof Coin," and states that "the Guinea is one of the world's most famous coins." The Board observed that applicant's website alone is sufficient to establish that the term "guinea" immediately conveys to coin collectors that the product being offered is a replica of a guinea coin.
The Board brushed aside applicant's claim of ownership of an EU registration, which served as the basis for the U.S. filing, pointing out that once an application is filed in the USA it must meet the eligibility requirements for registration.
And so the Board affirmed the refusal to register.
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TTABlog comment: Was this a WYHA? I think so.
By the way, as I recall, in Trollope's Palliser novels, Plantagenet Palliser was focused on the issue of the decimalization of British coins.
Text Copyright John L. Welch 2016.
I'm new here. What does WYHA mean? "Where's your head at?"
ReplyDeleteMore or less. WYHA? means Would you have appealed?
ReplyDelete