18 August 2016

Specsavers trade mark application for ‘should’ve’ has been accepted by the UK IPO

The UK Intellectual Property Office (“UK IPO”) has accepted the UK trade mark for SHOULD’VE and SHOULDVE applied for by Specsavers B.V. (“Specsavers”) for optical goods and optician services.

The decision taken by the UK IPO to accept a contraction of a term commonly used in the English language is surprising. A registered trade mark gives the trade mark holder the right to prevent a subsequently-filed trade mark from being registered if it is likely that confusion would arise because it is identical and / or similar to that registered trade mark and relates to identical and / or similar goods or services to those for which the registered trade mark is protected.

If Specsavers successfully obtains a registration for SHOULD’VE and SHOULDVE it may be able to prevent competitors from using SHOULD’VE or SHOULDVE as a trade mark. For Specsavers to successfully prevent competitors from using a trade mark such as SHOULD’VE or SHOULDVE Specsavers would need to demonstrate that SHOULD’VE or SHOULDVE was used in a trade mark sense to indicate origin.

Our team of trade mark attorneys can recommend whether to pursue an application for registration of a trade mark and discuss with you the benefits and implications of enforcing the trade mark once it proceeds to registration. Please contact our trade mark attorneys to discuss your trade mark portfolio.