Yet Another Misleading & Expensive Trademark Solicitation...

Here is yet another mass mailed/expensive/misleading Trademark Solicitation sent via USPS that offers renewal of your registration at the USPTO for $1,600 for one class of goods/services, sent a year "in advance" of beginning of the renewal period.

In this case, I received this trademark solicitation near the end of March 2019.  This particular mark does not expire until near the end of March 2021.  Nevertheless, this solicitation misleadingly shouts, in effect, that your trademark is about to expire and then next to it sets forth a date in late March 2020 for its renewal.  March 2020 is only the beginning of the one year renewal period. Expiration does not occur until March 2021.

The timing of this solicitation is key. It is a year before the USPTO sends out its notices regarding renewal.

Additionally, the USPTO Trademark Assistance Center has let it be known that they want to be advised when applicants/registrants receive these solicitations.  Therefore, I sent the above-referenced solicitation to the USPTO TM Assistance Center and here is their reply, in part, which sets forth some more important information on this topic, as well as information on maintaining your registration:

ALL OFFICIAL CORRESPONDENCE IS FROM THE USPTO:

Private companies not associated with the USPTO often use information from the USPTO’s databases to send trademark-related offers and notices.  Although the offers and notices may display information specific to your registration, any company that sends paperwork requesting fees for filing your maintenance documents with the USPTO is not affiliated or associated with the USPTO or any other federal agency.  All official correspondence will be from the “United States Patent and Trademark Office” in Alexandria, VA, and if by email, specifically from the domain “@uspto.gov.” 

If you receive a trademark-related offer or notice that you believe is deceptive, we encourage you to follow the steps outlined on our website at https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks-getting-started/non-uspto-solicitations to file an on-line consumer complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and if the company that sent you the notice or offer is not listed on the USPTO website, please email us at TrademarkAssistanceCenter@uspto.gov and let us know.   

YOU MUST FILE MAINTENANCE DOCUMENTS TIMELY

As of January 27, 2015, the USPTO began sending email reminder notices of the due dates for filing maintenance documents, but only if the owner or correspondent authorized email communication.  Even if you do not receive a reminder notice, you must timely file all maintenance documents or your registration will be cancelled and/or expire and it cannot be revived or reinstated.  The requirements and dates for filing maintenance documents are included with your registration certificate.   

YOU CAN FILE DOCUMENTS DIRECTLY WITH THE USPTO:

File your maintenance documents online through the Trademark Electronic Application System (TEAS) at https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks-application-process/filing-online/registration-maintenancerenewalcorrection-forms . 

The only fees you will be charged are those required by law.  The USPTO does not charge additional service fees for using its online filing system. 

NEW MAINTENANCE TAB:

The Trademark Status & Document Retrieval (TSDR) database at https://tsdr.uspto.gov/ has a new tab that allows you to view any upcoming post registration maintenance deadlines for your registration.  To see the tab, enter your application serial number or registration number and click the “Status” or “Documents” button.  Three tabs will appear:  “Status,” “Documents” and “Maintenance.”  Click on the “Maintenance” tab to see the due date for the next required maintenance filing.  If you already submitted a maintenance filing, you will see the status of any pending document.

If you have any further questions or if you require additional information, please contact the Trademark Assistance Center at 571-272-9250 and press "0". 

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Finally, the cost of this alleged service being offered in this solicitation is also expensive at $1,600 for one class of goods/services.  The filing fees for the Sec. 8 & 9 Affidavit to be filed at the time of renewal for one class of goods/services is $425.  Thus, this service/solicitation is keeping over $1,000 as profit.

Yes, it's a free country. No, you don't have to have this much.

Who was it that said, "A sucker is born every minute!"...  (P.T. Barnum)

Don't let it be you.

Be careful out there.....

Respectfully,

William E. Maguire,
Attorney at law
Santa Monica, Calif.
www.tmesq.com

*** This blog post is not intended as legal advice."

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Trademark Solicitations & Scams...

Dateline: Friday, March 29, 2019

A client of mine sent me a package yesterday containing over a dozen trademark solicitations and trademark registration/renewal scams.

Below are nine (9) of these misleading solicitations and scams.  

U.S. Trademark Applicants and Registrants need to be aware of these solicitations and scams in order to avoid spending money on uncertain services and/or outright scams.

A.  TRADEMARK SOLICITATIONS

note: these solicitations offer renewal services supposedly.  The concern is obviously that you would actually pay money to these services and whether or not they would actually do the work you expected them to is uncertain.  These solicitations are by and large misleading at best and are purposely designed to look official, in spite, perhaps, of the fine print to the contrary.

1.  PTMI

2.  U.S. TRADEMARK COMPLIANCE OFFICE

3.  PATENT & TRADEMARK BUREAU

4.  WTMR, LLC

B.  TRADEMARK SCAMS

1.  TM-Edition  INTERNATIONAL CATALOGUE OF TRADEMARKS - 2018

note:  This invoice is for USD $1,800.  (Eighteen Hundred Dollars).  Having your U.S. trademark registration listed in this catalogue is like having a star named after you in a book registered in the U.S. Copyright Office.  And this company is based in Hungary.

 

2.  GLOTRADE s.r.o.  Global Trademarks Protection

note:  For USD $2,890 you get nothing of value with respect to your U.S. trademark registration. Read the fine print. For example, it states, in part, "The publishing of the public registration of your trademarks is the basis of our offer. We offer our similarity service that protects your trademark from copyright infringement..."  (emphasis added).  

 3.  WPTR  Registration of International Trademark Renewal

note:  This offer for the price of USD $2,356 is offered to U.S. trademark applicants who have recently had their applications approved for publication and published by the USPTO.  On the face page of this so-called offer nothing of certainty is even offered.

4.  WTP Trademark Publication

note:  This company offers you for the price of USD $1,380, this company offers you "the registration of your brand in our private database..."  Yeah, so what?!...  Send your money to Miami if you dare and have money to burn for nothing of value in return.

5.  ITP  Trademark Publication

note:  Look carefully and you will see that this scam is from the same company as in 4 above re WTP  Trademark Publication.  This one is $40 cheaper at $1,340.  You get the same worthless "registration of your brand in our private database..." 

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FYI; From the U.S. PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE:

Here is a link to information offered by the USPTO on misleading notices:

https://www.uspto.gov/trademarks-getting-started/caution-misleading-notices

"Caution: misleading notices

Don't be fooled by potentially misleading offers and notices from private companies

Some trademark applicants and registrants have paid fees to private companies, mistakenly thinking they were paying fees required by the USPTO. We do not endorse any of these private companies and you are not required to use them."

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If you have more than one trademark on file at the USPTO, then you too are likely receiving these misleading solicitations and/or scams in the mail many times over.  I tell my clients to send them on to me for inspection at no charge or to throw them away. Be careful out there because there are companies and individuals trying to get you to part with your money for either uncertain services or they are outright scams.

Respectfully submitted,

William E. Maguire,

LAW OFFICES OF WILLIAM E. MAGUIRE,

Santa Monica, California, USA

www.TrademarkEsq.com

*** This blog post is not intended as legal advice. ***

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