Notice of Opposition

Transcription

1 Trademark Trial and Appeal Board Electronic Filing System. ESTTA Tracking number: ESTTA Filing date: 06/18/2014 IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE BEFORE THE TRADEMARK TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD Notice of Opposition Notice is hereby given that the following party opposes registration of the indicated application. Opposer Information Name Granted to Date of previous extension Address Anheuser-Busch, LLC 06/18/2014 One Busch Place St. Louis, MO UNITED STATES Attorney information Applicant Information Janet Shih Hajek Holland & Hart LLP P.O. Box 8749 Denver, CO UNITED STATES Application No Publication date 02/18/2014 Opposition Filing Date Applicant 06/18/2014 Opposition Period Ends Natty Greene's Brewing Company, LLC 1918 West Lee St. Greensboro, NC UNITED STATES Goods/Services Affected by Opposition 06/18/2014 Class 032. First Use: 2004/08/01 First Use In Commerce: 2004/08/01 All goods and services in the class are opposed, namely: Ale; Beer; Brewed malt-based alcoholic beverage in the nature of a beer Grounds for Opposition Priority and likelihood of confusion Dilution Trademark Act section 2(d) Marks Cited by Opposer as Basis for Opposition U.S. Registration No. Trademark Act section 43(c) Application Date 06/16/1998 Registration Date 09/28/1999 Foreign Priority Date

2 Word Mark Design Mark NATTY LIGHT Description of Mark Goods/Services Class 032. First use: First Use: 1998/07/00 First Use In Commerce: 1998/07/00 beer U.S. Registration No Application Date 06/11/2010 Registration Date 07/19/2011 Foreign Priority Date Word Mark Design Mark FATTY NATTY Description of Mark Goods/Services Class 032. First use: First Use: 2010/10/31 First Use In Commerce: 2010/10/31 Beer U.S. Registration No Application Date 02/08/2011 Registration Date 05/29/2012 Foreign Priority Date Word Mark Design Mark NATTY DADDY Description of Mark Goods/Services Class 032. First use: First Use: 2011/09/26 First Use In Commerce: 2011/09/26

3 Beer Attachments #TMSN.gif( bytes ) #TMSN.jpeg( bytes ) #TMSN.jpeg( bytes ) NATTY GREENE_S Notice of Opposition -FINAL.pdf(45063 bytes ) Certificate of Service The undersigned hereby certifies that a copy of this paper has been served upon all parties, at their address record by First Class Mail on this date. Signature /Hope I. Hamilton/ Name Hope I. Hamilton Date 06/18/2014

4 IN THE UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE BEFORE THE TRADEMARK TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD ANHEUSER-BUSCH, LLC, Opposer, v. Natty Greene s Brewing Company, LLC, Opposition No.: Trademark: NATTY GREENE S Serial No.: 86/047,695 Applicant. NOTICE OF OPPOSITION Anheuser-Busch, LLC ( Opposer ), a Missouri limited liability company, believes that it will be damaged by the registration of the trademark NATTY GREENE S shown in Application Serial No. 86/047,695, for ale; beer; brewed malt-based alcoholic beverage in the nature of a beer in International Class 32 (the Application ) and hereby opposes registration in Class 32. As grounds for its opposition, Opposer alleges that, upon actual knowledge with respect to itself and its own actions, and upon information and belief as to other matters: 1. Opposer is the leading brewer and marketer of beer in the United States, and Opposer and its predecessors have been marketing beer for more than a century. 2. Since at least as early as 1998, and well prior to the filing date of the Application, Opposer has established a family of NATTY-formative marks used in connection with beer. 3. Opposer s NATTY-formative marks are the subject of the following federal trademark registrations:

5 TRADEMARK REG. NO. REG. DATE GOODS NATTY LIGHT 2,282,182 September 28, 1999 Beer (Class 32) FATTY NATTY 3,999,541 July 19, 2011 Beer (Class 32) NATTY DADDY 4,151,136 May 29, 2012 Beer (Class 32) 4. The registrations for each of the marks set forth above (collectively the NATTY Marks ) are valid and subsisting and therefore constitute prima facie evidence of the validity of the marks and registrations, and of Opposer s exclusive rights to use the marks in connection with the goods set forth in these registrations. 5. The foregoing registrations also provide constructive notice of Opposer s ownership of its NATTY Marks. 6. Opposer has sold millions of dollars worth of beer under the NATTY Marks, and has spent millions of dollars advertising and promoting its products under these trademarks. 7. As a result of Opposer s extensive marketing and promotion, coupled with the overwhelming commercial success of its products, Opposer s NATTY Marks have become famous and well known. COUNT I Likelihood of Confusion 15 U.S.C. 1052(d) 8. Opposer realleges and incorporates by reference the preceding allegations of its Notice of Opposition. 2

6 9. Since well prior to the filing date of the Application, as well as the August 1, 2004 claimed date of first use, Opposer has used one or more of the NATTY Marks in connection with beer. 10. Applicant s NATTY GREENE S trademark so resembles Opposer s prior used and registered NATTY Marks as to be likely, when used in connection with the goods set forth in the Application, to cause confusion, or to cause mistake, or to deceive under Section 2(d) of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. 1052(d). COUNT II Likelihood of Dilution 15 U.S.C. 1125(c) 11. Opposer realleges and incorporates by reference the preceding allegations of its Notice of Opposition. 12. Opposer s NATTY Marks are famous and well known and became famous under 15 U.S.C. 1125(c) well prior to the filing date of the Application and the claimed date of first use set forth in the Application. 13. Applicant s NATTY GREENE S trademark so resembles Opposer s prior used and registered NATTY Marks as to dilute or to be likely to cause dilution of the distinctive quality of Opposer s trademark by blurring under section 43(c) of the Lanham Act, 15 U.S.C. 1125(c). WHEREFORE, Opposer believes that it will be damaged by registration of the trademark shown in Application Serial No. 86/047,695 and respectfully requests that the opposition be sustained, and that registration to Applicant be refused. 3

7 The filing fee in the amount of $300 is being transmitted electronically with this submission. Any deficiency in the fee should be charged to Deposit Account No Dated this 18th day of June, Respectfully submitted, /Hope Hamilton/ Andrea Anderson Janet Hajek Hope Hamilton HOLLAND & HART LLP P.O. Box 8749 Denver, Colorado (303) (phone) s: Attorneys for Opposer Anheuser-Busch, LLC 4

8 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I certify that on June 18, 2014, I served a true and correct copy of the above NOTICE OF OPPOSITION to the following by U.S. Mail, postage prepaid: David W. Sar Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard, L.L. P.O. Box Greensboro, North Carolina /Hope Hamilton/ Hope Hamilton _2 5