Over the weekend, countless media outlets began reporting that singer Megan Thee Stallion’s application to register “Hot Girl Summer,” as a trademark for entertainment services had been successful. This highlights a common misconception in trademark law: filing a trademark does not mean the mark is successfully registered. The application that was filed in July of this year has in fact merely been accepted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”). What does that mean in plain English? Not a lot. It means her application has met the minimum filing requirements, which is just the first of many steps towards actual registration. If you are unfamiliar with the life cycle of a trademark, check out this illustration with the steps.
So, Megan Thee Stallion’s application is actually at the very beginning of the trademark life cycle. Now that her application has been accepted by the USPTO, it will be assigned to an examiner approximately three months after the filing date. The process to register a trademark is not as quick as some people might think. It can take anywhere from eight months to two years, depending on if the Applicant receives Office Actions from the USPTO or runs into other possible complications.
Thus, despite the fact that Megan Thee Stallion’s trademark application has taken a step in the right direction towards registration, it has not in fact been registered yet and may not register for quite some time.
Article by Lara Hall