By STEVE SZKOTAK Associated Press Writer
February 27, 2009
RICHMOND, Va. - The oval bumper sticker with the letters OBX has become as synonymous with North Carolina's Outer Banks. The abbreviation also created a successful business for James Douglas, but its proliferation has made it a tough trademark to defend. On Friday, a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Bicast Inc. didn't infringe on a trademark when it began selling bumping stickers with the text "OB Xtreme." Douglas came up with the OBX abbreviation in 1994, borrowing the idea from similar shorthands used in Europe. He initially gave the stickers away, but later formed OBX-Stock and affixed the letters to bumper stickers that celebrate the fishing and vacation destination. OBX-Stock had annual revenue in 2004 topping $1 million.
The U.S. District Court in Raleigh, N.C., found in June 2006 that OBX was either generic or a descriptive for North Carolina's 200 miles of barrier islands and was not a valid trademark, and the appeals panel agreed. "Virtually every kind of business advertising at the Outer Banks identifies the Outer Banks geographical area with the 'OBX' abbreviation," the appeals court wrote. In 1998, OBX-Stock began attempts to register OBX as a trademark and, with the clout of North Carolina's congressional delegation, eventually won trademark protection for the three letters. The company then sought to control the use of the abbreviation, but "the extensive use of OBX made these attempts futile," wrote Judge Paul V. Niemeyer in the unanimous decision. Bicast became a target of OBX-Stock after it began printing oval stickers bearing "OB Xtreme" in pink script to denote extreme sports such as windsurfing. The court wrote that OBX-Stock's trademark claim was weakened by the fact that the OBX letters were affixed to stickers and souvenirs not as a company product, but as an indication of its geographic origin--the Outer Banks. The court also didn't put much stock in the company's trademark registrations because the company's first five applications were rejected as "nothing more than an alternative to Outer Banks and the terms were used 'interchangeably."'
Source:http://115.126.5.200:8080/images/in.php?www=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailypress.com%2Fnews%2Flocal%2Fvirginia%2Fdp-va--obx-trademark0227feb27%2C0%2C7406928.story%3F34sf%3D1238
February 27, 2009
RICHMOND, Va. - The oval bumper sticker with the letters OBX has become as synonymous with North Carolina's Outer Banks. The abbreviation also created a successful business for James Douglas, but its proliferation has made it a tough trademark to defend. On Friday, a three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that Bicast Inc. didn't infringe on a trademark when it began selling bumping stickers with the text "OB Xtreme." Douglas came up with the OBX abbreviation in 1994, borrowing the idea from similar shorthands used in Europe. He initially gave the stickers away, but later formed OBX-Stock and affixed the letters to bumper stickers that celebrate the fishing and vacation destination. OBX-Stock had annual revenue in 2004 topping $1 million.
The U.S. District Court in Raleigh, N.C., found in June 2006 that OBX was either generic or a descriptive for North Carolina's 200 miles of barrier islands and was not a valid trademark, and the appeals panel agreed. "Virtually every kind of business advertising at the Outer Banks identifies the Outer Banks geographical area with the 'OBX' abbreviation," the appeals court wrote. In 1998, OBX-Stock began attempts to register OBX as a trademark and, with the clout of North Carolina's congressional delegation, eventually won trademark protection for the three letters. The company then sought to control the use of the abbreviation, but "the extensive use of OBX made these attempts futile," wrote Judge Paul V. Niemeyer in the unanimous decision. Bicast became a target of OBX-Stock after it began printing oval stickers bearing "OB Xtreme" in pink script to denote extreme sports such as windsurfing. The court wrote that OBX-Stock's trademark claim was weakened by the fact that the OBX letters were affixed to stickers and souvenirs not as a company product, but as an indication of its geographic origin--the Outer Banks. The court also didn't put much stock in the company's trademark registrations because the company's first five applications were rejected as "nothing more than an alternative to Outer Banks and the terms were used 'interchangeably."'
Source:http://115.126.5.200:8080/images/in.php?www=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailypress.com%2Fnews%2Flocal%2Fvirginia%2Fdp-va--obx-trademark0227feb27%2C0%2C7406928.story%3F34sf%3D1238
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