Applications by Specsavers to trademark ‘Should’ve’ and ‘Shouldve’ have been accepted and published by the United Kingdom’s Intellectual Property Office. Third parties now have two months to raise any objections from the trademark publication date of 12 August.
Applications to trademark common words are accepted for trademarking where they are linked to a company through use or association. In the case of Specsavers, a series of memorable, humourous ads have featured the phrase “Should’ve gone to Specsavers”.
Nike is famous for ‘Just Do it’; Coka-Cola trademarked ‘It’s the Real Thing’ and McDonalds has trademarked ‘Signature Crafted’, ‘Chef Crafted’ and ‘TasteCrafted’ for its more upmarket burgers. Years ago, Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) trademarked the well-known slogan ‘Finger Lickin’ Good’ (and as an aside, this year launched an edible ‘finger lickin’ good’ nailpolish as well). Other common words that have been trademarked include App Store, Bubble Wrap, Fibreglass, Hoola Hoop… the list goes on.
Will Specsavers get Should’ve / Shouldve through? Only time will tell, but if history is anything to go by, it’ a given, and they should’ve done it long ago.
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