In Re Greenliant Systems, Ltd. ______
THIS OPINION IS A PRECEDENT OF THE TTAB Mailed: November 29, 2010 UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE ________ Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ________ In re Greenliant Systems, Ltd. ________ Serial No. 78724139 _______ Paul A. McLean of DLA Piper LLP (US) for Greenliant Systems, Ltd. Kelley L. Wells, Trademark Examining Attorney, Law Office 105 (Thomas G. Howell, Managing Attorney). _______ Before Bucher, Taylor and Bergsman, Administrative Trademark Judges. Opinion by Bergsman, Administrative Trademark Judge: Greenliant Systems, Ltd. (“applicant”) seeks to register the mark NANDRIVE on the Principal Register, in standard character form, for “electronic integrated circuits,” in Class 9.1 Applicant claimed first use of its mark anywhere and first use of the mark in commerce at least as early as February 27, 2007. 1 Applicant is the successor to Silicon Storage Technology, Inc., the original applicant. The assignment of the mark and use-based application was recorded in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on June 2, 2010, at reel 4216, frame 0821. Serial No. 78724139 Applicant’s specimen of use comprising a photograph of the mark applied to the goods is displayed below. The Trademark Examining Attorney refused to register applicant’s mark under Section 2(e)(1) of the Trademark Act of 1946, 15 U.S.C. §1052(e)(1), on the ground that applicant’s mark is merely descriptive. According to the Examining Attorney, “applicant’s electronic integrated circuits are memory storage devices which utilize NAND flash memory technology or are flash memory drives. The applicant’s goods are NAND drives.”2 While maintaining the position that its mark is not merely descriptive, applicant requested that NANDRIVE be allowed to register on the Principal Register under Section 2(f) or, in the alternative, on the Supplemental Register.
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