Last month, the US Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) found that the mark BIG SIX was generic for wine and upheld the Examining Attorney’s refusal to register the mark as a result. Plata Wine Partners filed an intent-to-use application to register BIG SIX for wines in January 2017. The Examining Attorney initially refused registration under Section 2(e)(1) on the ground that BIG SIX was a term of art in the wine industry, and thus descriptive of wine. The Examining Attorney also found that BIG SIX was generic, and therefore incapable of functioning as a source identifier, for wine. In response, Applicant submitted an allegation of use and amended its application to the Supplemental Register—the trademark register designed for descriptive marks that have the potential to be source identifiers. The Examining Attorney then refused registration under Section 23(c) of the Lanham Act, on the ground that BIG SIX is generic for wine and, alternatively, that it is descriptive. Applicant appealed.
