Not Suitable for a Trademark
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has refused to accept LG Electronics' application to register “QNED” as a trademark for its TV monitors and smartphone display panels.
The agency’s initial determination came out four months after LG Electronics submitted the application in September 2020.
The USPTO said that QNED is an acronym for quantum nano-emitting diode, which is being developed by technology companies as a next-generation display technology. It pointed out that it is a term that simply describes a display technology that can be applied to TV monitors and smartphone panels.
According to the U.S. Patent Act, when a trademark registration applicant's product can be distinguished from others, patent registration authorities cannot refuse to register the trademark except for some exceptional cases. The first exception where the registration of a trademark can be denied is when it is merely descriptive or deceptively misdescriptive of a product.
The USPTO notified LG Electronics of its determination, telling it to supplement the application if it wants to reapply. If LG Electronics wants to reapply, it needs to give an answer to the agency within six months.
LG Electronics submitted the application on Sep. 8, 2020. At the time, it filed applications for the registration of NQED and QNLED as well as QNED as trademarks with Korean, European and Australian patent registration authorities.