<html aria-label="message body"><head><meta http-equiv="content-type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body style="overflow-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; line-break: after-white-space;">Perhaps no new search is needed.<div>The original search should have included the \u201co\u201d as an o in addition to the smiley image.</div><div>If the original search passed, then the simplification likely ought also.</div><div>That\u2019s logic, not always controlling.</div><div><br></div><div>Daniel Kegan<br id="lineBreakAtBeginningOfMessage"><div><br><blockquote type="cite"><div>On Oct 23, 2025, at 11:09\u202fAM, Dale Quisenberry via E-trademarks <e-trademarks@oppedahl-lists.com> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><div><meta charset="UTF-8"><div class="WordSection1" style="page: WordSection1; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: TimesNewRomanPSMT; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; text-decoration: none;"><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">I think there is a good chance it would deemed a material alteration as creating a different commercial impression.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: 24pt;">1609.02(a) Determining What Constitutes Material Alteration of Mark</span></b></div><div id="mail-editor-reference-message-container"><div><div><div id="ms-outlook-mobile-signature"><div style="margin: 0cm;"><span style="font-size: 8pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"><o:p></o:p></span></div></div><div id="mail-editor-reference-message-container"><div style="border-width: 1pt medium medium; border-style: solid none none; border-image: none; padding: 3pt 0cm 0cm; border-color: currentcolor;"><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0cm 0cm 12pt; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">From:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></b><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Jessica R. Friedman <<a href="mailto:jrfriedman@litproplaw.com" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;">jrfriedman@litproplaw.com</a>><br><b>Date:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b>Thursday, October 16, 2025 at 10:53</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial, sans-serif;">\u202f</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">AM<br><b>To:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b>For trademark practitioners. This is not for laypersons to seek legal advice. <<a href="mailto:e-trademarks@oppedahl-lists.com" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;">e-trademarks@oppedahl-lists.com</a>><br><b>Subject:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></b>Changing "o" to smiley face in design mark: material alteration?<o:p></o:p></span></p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(10, 47, 65);">Client filed an ITU application (on its own) to register a stylized version of a word with the letter \u201co\u201d in it. But on the actual packaging, Client substituted a smiley face for the letter \u201co.\u201d So any specimen will have the smiley face.</span><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(10, 47, 65);"> </span><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(10, 47, 65);">I\u2019m concerned that this is a material alteration that will result in rejection of the specimen (since the PTO did not search for marks with smiley faces). Has anyone dealt with this particular problem?</span><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(10, 47, 65);"> </span><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 51, 102);">Jessica R. Friedman</span><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 51, 102);">Attorney at Law</span><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 51, 102);">300 East 59 Street, Ste. 2406</span><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 51, 102);">New York, NY 10022</span><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 51, 102);">Phone: 212-220-0900</span><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 51, 102);">Cell: 917-647-1884</span><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 51, 102);">E-mail:</span><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: blue;"> </span><u><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(5, 99, 193);"><a href="mailto:jrfriedman@litproplaw.com" title="mailto:jrfriedman@litproplaw.com" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;"><span style="color: rgb(5, 99, 193);">jrfriedman@litproplaw.com</span></a></span></u><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; font-size: 10pt; font-family: Aptos, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(0, 51, 102);">URL:<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span><u><span style="font-size: 7pt; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif; color: rgb(5, 99, 193);"><a href="http://www.literarypropertylaw.com/" title="http://www.literarypropertylaw.com" style="color: blue; text-decoration: underline;"><span style="color: rgb(5, 99, 193);">www.literarypropertylaw.com</span></a></span></u><o:p></o:p></div><div style="margin: 0cm; 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