I did not even know that Pepsi had a drink called "Jazz"!!! (Wonder what that says about the drink...)
I read this article on a website called 'All About Jazz' where the Pepsi spokesperson said the following - “No one had trademarked the word, ...so we took the opportunity to secure our brand property. We feel this will eliminate confusion that may be usurping our brand integrity and product recognition. From now on, when anyone says 'Jazz,' everyone will know they mean 'Pepsi Jazz.'”
Seriously - KEEP DREAMING!
A basic tenet of trademark law is that there be no confusion between two marks. The first step to ensure that is by demonstrating that one mark is popular enough to meet the "consumer recognition" threshold. The Ambercrombie spectrum is used to determine strength of the marks to qualify them for protection. Generic marks- well there is no surprise how these are treated - IGNORED. Jazz has a rich history and a rich sound and has been for a long time been associated with a certain form of music. To imagine it having a taste of Black Cherry French Vanilla is something else altogether. The article states that Pepsi Jazz has been in use since 2006 but the word Jazz has been used since 1915. The legal department is sending out their tracked pigeons bearing cease and desist letters and it seems (shockingly) some recipients are willing to comply.
WHY?
The TESS system shows that there is a trademark registration for Pepsi Jazz and its specimen can be seen on this TDR finding. Pepsi Jazz is a brand name adopted by Pepsi Co. in 2006. Regardless of all these facts, I am struggling to imagine how ANYBODY can claim that " 'Jazz,' will mean 'Pepsi Jazz.'”
Big corporate dreams come with big corporate checks -reality.. well apparently, that is only an affliction of the populace. (Now i have certainly the blues...)
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