Trump's Truth Social has trademark application denied as setbacks pile up

[LetMyPeopleVote]

Remember that Trump Media & Technology was supposed to be capitalized with between $780 million and $1 billion when the merger with the special purpose acquisition corporation was consummated. When you are building a major company, you have to be careful with your intellectual property and trademarks. Here the name Truth Social is too close to at least two other trademarks

TFG is a horrible businessman and should have spent the money to make sure that his intellectual property was in good shape.

Link to tweet

https://www.axios.com/2022/08/25/trump-truth-social-trademark-denied

The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) refused Donald Trump's application for a trademark for "Truth Social," the name of his social media company earlier this month. A trademark lawyer in Washington surfaced the filing on Thursday.

Why it matters: The trademark refusal is just the latest setback for the former president's social media app and its parent company, which have been beset by a raft of issues over the past few months.

What's happening: The USPTO found two other companies who already use the Truth Social wording, which would create what's known as "likelihood of confusion" if Trump also got the mark......

The big picture: Truth Social and the SPAC looking to take its parent company public have faced enormous legal and technical challenges ever since the app was announced last October.

Last week, Digital World Acquisition Group (DWAC), the blank check company that plans to merge with the parent company Truth Social to take it public, looked to delay its earnings report

The week before it asked shareholders to approve an extension of its merger agreement by a year.

The Truth Social app missed its launch deadline, putting thousands of users on a waitlist for weeks.

The SPAC is under investigation by the SEC for possibly negotiating their deal prior to DWAC going public, which is illegal if true.

An investor sued the SPAC's CEO last year claiming fraud.

There's been confusion regarding whether or not certain members of the board are still on the board.

[DemocraticPatriot]

1. Where are the Trump "billions" ??

Surely he can afford to pay the mere "$1.5 million" that he owes his web host ?? It is a pittance-- even compared to the money he grifted from his MAGAt supporters....

Of course, he does not like to pay his bills...



Possibly, he thinks that web hosting fees are "different"--
that they will not cut off services for non-payment, as the electric, water, and gas utilities do ??






He will find out.... and then where will we laugh over his indecipherable pronouncements ???

FORMER ILLIGITIMATE President Trump--- I BEG you to pay your goddam web hosting bill !!!
If you FAIL, it will be a nearly insurmountable blow to American comedy about MAGAt marching orders!!

[LetMyPeopleVote]

2. Trump's Truth Social in financial ruin AND denied trademarks? Nice.

This makes me smile

Link to tweet

[OAITW r.2.0]

3. How many times has Trump lost businesses?

Not as many as losing elections, but an impressive lot.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

4. Donald Trump's 13 Biggest Business Failures

People have lost count of the total number of business failures but here are the top 13

Link to tweet

https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/donald-trumps-13-biggest-business-failures-59556/

[LetMyPeopleVote]

5. Here are some more failures. Trump was not a successful business man. Really!

Link to tweet

[LetMyPeopleVote]

14. For this thread

Link to tweet

[vlyons]

6. Jeez how embarrassing

well ya know what they say -- Everything Trump touches ...

The real experienced business people know to check and double check anything that Trump offers up. And sure enough, there's rot and slime under the floorboards, making it stink to high heavens.

[AZLD4Candidate]

7. womp womp womp!

[Princess Turandot]

8. FYI: The two companies holding a similar trademark ...

One is Vero Labs. They have a social media platform and related app called 'Vero True Social'

Vero Labs trademarks: https://uspto.report/Search/Vero%20Labs
Vero Labs Wikipedia: https://tinyurl.com/2lxltf4k

The other is Rwachsberg Holdings, which shows a registrant address in Ontario CA. They have a trademark on something called 'The Truth Network'.
Rwachsberg Holdings trademarks: https://uspto.report/company/Rwachsberg-Holdings-Inc

Here's Mr Gerben's original tweet.

Link to tweet

[HAB911]

9. Another Trump success story

[mopinko]

10. maybe he can more accurately name it in russian- pravda

[tanyev]

11. Easy fix. Call it The Ministry of Truth Social.

Which would be a far more appropriate name for it anyway.

[FSogol]

12. Treason Social?

[keithbvadu2]

13. Social Truth Donald - STD

Social Truth Donald - STD

[LetMyPeopleVote]

15. This makes me smile

[Hekate]

16. Gosh

[LetMyPeopleVote]

17. BREAKING NEWS: Worst businessman ever continues to be bad at business.

Link to tweet

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2022/08/trump-truth-social-spac-finances-new-reporting/

New subpoenas served on the firm in June suggest the probe could be expanding. News of the federal scrutiny has contributed to the company’s stock price falling 75 percent since its peak, with reported losses to the tune of $6.5 million.

The Trump company has also stopped paying a key vendor. Fox Business reported this week that Truth Social owes a web-hosting company called RightForge $1 million and has failed to make contractually required payments since March.

Digital World Acquisition’s SEC filings have also sounded a series of warnings about the company’s chances for success. In May, it said Trump’s company “may never generate any operating revenues or ever achieve profitable operations.” The filings have repeatedly warned that the venture is endangered by its reliance on the former president. “If President Trump were to discontinue his relationship with TMTG due to death, disability, or any other reason, or limit his involvement with TMTG due to becoming a candidate for political office, TMTG would be significantly disadvantaged,” they said in May. And as Mother Jones has reported, Truth Social does not even get exclusive access to his content. Trump is not required to use the site to post any content related to politics, which, of course, is most of what he says.

Digital World Acquisition has also repeatedly warned in filings that: “If President Trump becomes less popular or there are further controversies that damage his credibility or the desire of people to use a platform associated with him, and from which he will derive financial benefit, TMTG’s results of operations could be adversely affected.”

It’s fair to say further controversy has occurred. More trouble looms. A business relying on Donald Trump’s credibility is not, let’s say, ideally positioned.

[TheBlackAdder]

18. Time for those other Truth Social sites to sue Trump's feaking ass for soiling their image.

[Ms. Toad]

19. Details on the trademark issues.

The commentary on the trademarks is a bit confused and misleading.

Trump has applied for three marks. There were office actions on two of those this month (the 2nd and 10th), and one in June. None of the actions are final (i.e. Trump's attorneys have an opportunity to convince them to change their minds).

Truth Social - as a source identifier for three classes of goods commonly used to market things (mugs, T-shirts, flags, headwear, etc.)

On August 10, the PTO found no barriers to registration and approved the mark for publication. Publication allows others with marks similar to the mark to object and submit evidence for the PTO to consider. Unless a mark is universally known (e.g. Coke, Nike), the fact that the marks appear to be confusingly similar when used as a source identifier for social networking goods and service doesn't mean it will be confusingly similar for marketing junk. Trademarks identify the source of the goods or services - in other words it tells the world who it is that is providing the goods or services. They serve as an adjective - so, for example, Truth Social social media platform; Nike shoes, etc. So even if Truth Social social media platform is confusingly similar with Vero -True Social social media platform, it may not be confusingly similar when used as a source identifier for T-shirts (i.e. Truth Social T-shirts) - because there may not be a similar trademark for T-shirts, and the fact that Vero-True Social has registered its trademark for social media networks doesn't mean it can be used as a source identifier for t-shirts - unless the owner of Vero-True Social registered the mark for T-shirts.

TRUTHSOCIAL - as a source identifier for 6 classes of goods and services - generally including the Truth Social mark goods and related services (below), and expanding into marketing services

The last office action on this mark was August 2, 2022 - a non-final office action rejecting registration because it was confusingly similar to 2 other marks (The Truth Network, Vero - True Social). Trump has 6 months to respond.

Truth Social - as a source identifier for one classs of software and software applications for interacting on social media

The last action on this mark was a non-final office action on June 6, when a second confusingly similar mark was reported (The Truth Network). The first (Vero - Truth Social) was acted on in an earlier non-final office action on April 5. Trump has 6 months to reply to the April 5 office action.

TLDR: Three trademark applications, none finally rejected, two are likely to be rejected in the long run, the third is too early to tell - but the action so far is favorable.

[gratuitous]

20. The mistake was not sending Ivanka to China to get the trademark

Rookie mistake there, Mr. Shart of the Deal.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

21. Denial is not just a river in Africa

Link to tweet