Yellow Hue's Registering for Intellectual Property Remarkably Unsuccessful for Cheerios Brand
In the realm of intellectual property, trademarks serve as a legal safeguard for a brand's unique identity, protecting names, logos, and distinctive elements. This protection extends to colours, as long as they have become "inherently distinctive" to consumers.
Recently, General Mills, the company behind the iconic cereal, Cheerios, has been trying to trademark the colour yellow for cereal boxes. However, the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) has rejected this bid.
The TTAB's decision was based on the fact that the yellow box of cereal is not necessarily associated with Cheerios in the eyes of the consumers. This is a significant hurdle, as when a colour is trademarked, direct competitors can no longer use it on similar products.
It's worth noting that the TTAB's decision does not affect the trademark on the Cheerios logo or name.
The success of single-color trademarks, such as UPS's brown, T-Mobile's magenta, Target's red, and Home Depot's orange, primarily rests on their ability to prove that the colour has acquired a distinctive secondary meaning associated specifically with their brand. This approach was affirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court in Qualitex Co. v. Jacobson Products Co. (1995).
General Mills would need to demonstrate that the yellow colour on Cheerios packaging has acquired secondary meaning among consumers—meaning that when consumers see this colour, they immediately think of Cheerios—and that the colour does not serve a functional purpose.
Cheerios has been marketed in yellow packaging since 1945 and has sold billions. However, it's important to note that Cheerios itself comes in a variety of flavours, not all of which are packaged in yellow boxes.
This rejection comes after a similar legal challenge was refused by the Supreme Court regarding the term "google." Google Inc. had filed a cybersquatting lawsuit against Chris Gillespie, who had registered 763 domain names that included the word "google."
Trademark law, patent, and copyright are the three main types of intellectual property protection, safeguarding creations and innovations of individuals and businesses alike. As we see, even established brands like General Mills must navigate the complexities of trademark law to protect their unique identities in the market.
In the context of Cheerios' attempt to trademark the color yellow for cereal boxes, dispute resolution through the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) was unsuccessful due to consumers not associating the color solely with the brand. To secure successful finance for future business ventures, General Mills must demonstrate that the yellow color on Cheerios packaging has acquired a distinctive secondary meaning among consumers, distinct from its functional purpose, as is crucial in dispute resolution for single-color trademarks under trademark law.
