Filmmaker Mode Trademark Application Hits PTO Hurdle

The UHD Alliance’s application to trademark Filmmaker Mode as a certification logo for compliant TVs appeared to be cruising toward a successful conclusion until an examining attorney at the Patent and Trademark Office abruptly halted its progress over an awkward technicality. UHDA filed a statement of use Oct. 13 attesting to the logo’s commercial deployment since 2020. PTO requires the SOU, customarily one of the last steps before issuing a registration certificate, to prevent applicants from hoarding trademarks. But PTO attorney Catherine Caycedo refused the registration Nov. 7 when she noticed that the logo depicted in the photo of a Filmmaker Mode-compliant Samsung TV accompanying the SOU was missing the white squares that were designed into the “color drawing” in UHDA’s original May 2019 application. UHDA lawyers responded Nov. 19 with a request for reconsideration, explaining that “the white parts of the design are treated as transparent and these areas typically take on the background within the product’s packaging.” They agreed to amend the wording of the logo’s color description, asking that the application now “be approved for registration.” PTO didn’t respond to questions.