1209.03(a)    Third-Party Registrations

Third-party registrations are not conclusive on the question of descriptiveness or genericness. Each case must stand on its own merits, and a mark that is merely descriptive or generic does not become registrable simply because other seemingly similar marks appear on the register. In re Consumer Prot. Firm PLLC, 2021 USPQ2d 238, at *22 (TTAB 2021) (citing In re Scholastic Testing Serv., Inc., 196 USPQ 517, 519 (TTAB 1977)). The question of whether a mark is merely descriptive or generic must be determined based on the evidence of record at the time registration is sought. In re Consumer Prot. Firm PLLC, 2021 USPQ2d 238, at *22 (citing In re theDot Commc’ns Network LLC, 101 USPQ2d 1062, 1064 (TTAB 2011)) (holding THE CONSUMER PROTECTION FIRM generic for legal services where the Board found third-party registrations presented dissimilar circumstances); see In re Nett Designs Inc., 236 F.3d 1339, 1342, 57 USPQ2d 1564, 1566 (Fed. Cir. 2001) (holding ULTIMATE BIKE RACK merely descriptive of "bicycle racks" despite the presence of "ultimate" without a disclaimer in other marks on the Principal Register); In re Sun Microsystems Inc., 59 USPQ2d 1084 (TTAB 2001) (holding AGENTBEANS merely descriptive of computer software for use in software development and deployment where the Board found that changes in the vocabulary of the field reduced the relevance of third-party registrations).