Towergate Software » The 2(d) Citation Watch » IP related software and data mining

Towergate Software awarded TM monitoring contract

November 29 2011 tev kofsky charts 0 comments

We pleased to announce that the US Department of Homeland Security has recently awarded Towergate Software the contract to monitor its entire portfolio of trademarks. Our unique methodologies and proprietary software will provide optimal watch coverage on a worldwide basis for the variety of Homeland Security marks, including many design marks, spanning the various government departments and agencies under their wing.

We’re very proud that Homeland Security has recognized the dedication we bestow upon the work required, and the overall value proposition our services offer to such an important portfolio.

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2d Design Gallery

November 28 2011 tev kofsky charts 0 comments

Here are some refused designs
Click to open Gallery

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Patent Citation Watch: An early warning system for your patents

October 28 2011 tev kofsky charts 0 comments

Our Patent Citation Watch means you can now get an early heads-up on instances when the PTO examiner cites any patent in your portfolio. Each week we will watch your entire portfolio against all newly issued patents, and report any citation the examiner makes relative to your patents. Now your entire patent portfolio, even third-party patents you want to keep watch over, can be monitored for when they are referenced by an examiner.

Just like our trademark-related Bulk TM Watch and 2(d) Citation Watch services, we’re now giving you portfolio-wide patent coverage at an affordable cost.

We can also track any specific action noted within the transaction history for any given set of patents. Ask us about how we can best assist your needs.

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2(d) Watch among top 10 trademark tools

September 07 2011 tev kofsky 2(d) Citation Watch, 2(d) refusals, trademark 0 comments

We’re happy to announce that the latest World Trademark Review magazine (Oct/Nov ’11) includes an article on “10 of the best online trademark tools“, in which our own 2(d) Citation Watch has been listed. Although technically not an online tool (although it is delivered via email and will eventually be downloadable as well) it further proves that the uniqueness and value of this service is what counts. Copies of the article are available upon request.

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New TM Search product rollout

July 29 2011 charts 0 comments

Just launched is our new TM search tool to assist your clearance and knockout searches, by providing you with one-of-a-kind information to help you predict prosecution outcomes. Armed with examples of similar marks that have been previously opposed or refused by the examiner under 2(d) or 2(e), you can now make more informed decisions and have the inside scoop on potential obstacles you may encounter! Moreover, using this info to prepare your response to office actions or appeals can save you considerable time down the road, and we can easily refresh your results months later with the most up-to-date information from the PTO. Results are delivered to you within 24 hours (in many cases even same day) on our secure online portal. See first hand how this amazing tool can streamline and augment your own clearance process.

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Customer feedback is great!

May 26 2011 charts 0 comments

Just returned from the annual INTA conference where we had the opportunity to network with some of our existing clients as well as to meet potential new ones. As you can imagine, having the opportunity to meaningfully engage your client base, especially attorneys pressed for time, is a real challenge to most service providers. But it can be a very rewarding and insightful exercise… in a word, invaluable. We have some interesting new idea kernels to chew on, which will no doubt lead to more innovative products we hope to soon launch! Thanks to everyone we had the opportunity to meet, present to, and dialogue with. You ideas help incubate and evolve our products, so stayed tuned.

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TM filing observations regarding the new vernacular

January 11 2011 2(d) Citation Watch, 2(d) refusals, trademark, ttab 0 comments

Here’s a notable observation we’ve come across while parsing through PTO data used each week to generate our popular 2(d) Citation Watch: Applicant’s frequent use of another’s registered trademark within the identification and classification of goods. Notable examples of this (mal)practice are just about any product by APPLE Inc. (iPhone, iPad,etc.,) and apparently those of HOODIES USA.

Using the example of APPLE, we’ve seen the following notations by the examiner countless times.

The wording “IPHONE” in the identification of goods is a registered mark not owned by applicant. See enclosed registration. In its own application, an applicant may use its own registered mark in an identification of goods or services, but may not use a registered mark owned by another party. A registered mark indicates origin in one party and cannot be used to define goods or services that originate in a party other than the registrant. TMEP §1402.09; see Camloc Fastener Corp. v. Grant, 119 USPQ 264, 264 n.1 (TTAB 1958). Therefore, applicant must amend the identification of goods by deleting the wording “IPHONE” and substituting the common commercial or generic name for the goods.

In general, isn’t this a basic tenet of TM-101? Is there sufficient awareness by applicants and their counsel of this restriction within the description of goods?

And here are some stats to back it up. There were approximately 85 applications with the terms IPHONE in the description of Goods, increasing each year since 2007 with the majority appearing in 2010. A similar pattern is now emerging for IPAD. Lastly, there are zero REGISTERED marks with any of those terms in the description of Goods, which shows that the USPTO is consistent in applying the criteria – at least for APPLE Inc.!

Can we conclude that this situation has led to much wastage of time, effort and money by all parties involved, due to the necessity to file, refile, respond to office actions and correct existing applications…not to mention taxing the examiners’ workload and leading to further traffic snarls and backlog along the TM prosecution highway? Is this another measure of APPLE’s success in the marketplace, that it has created this new vernacular that itself is used by others, yet detrimentally so by impacting the timely registrations of these third party trademarks? Do you think they planned it that way?

Lets hope that in 2011 applicants learn this lesson….

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Bulk TM Watch now more affordable!

December 07 2010 charts 0 comments

We’ve re-aligned pricing of our Bulk TM Watch to allow smaller IP firms to take advantage of this great tool. Now a base watch can start with just 100 marks, for about the cost of a premium coffee per workday. Same great ROI, same great coverage!

Smaller firms can also group purchase a Bulk Watch to take advantage of even greater economies of scale. Ask us how.

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