I.Protect: Distinctive marks

Clint Fabiosa & Ana Liza Villamor

MARKS which are arbitrarily or fancifully-applied refer to words or symbols which are common in the language (including dictionary words), but when used with particular products and services, neither suggest nor describe any ingredient, quality, or characteristic of the products and services. These are inherently distinctive because of their unlikely association with the products and services that they cover.

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An example is “OXYGEN” which is used as trademark for clothes and fashion accessories.

Another is “SHAMROCK” which refers to trifoliate plants (like a small clover) but is fancifully-applied to food products (Cebu delicacies). Other famous examples are “ARROW” for clothes, “SUN” for mobile services, and “CAMEL” for cigarettes.

(clint.fabiosa@iprotect.ph / analiza.villamor@iprotect.ph)