1306.02(h) Same Mark Not Registrable as a Certification Mark and Another Type of Mark
Because a certification mark’s purpose and function differ significantly from those of other types of marks, registration as a certification mark precludes the same owner from registering the same mark as any other type of mark (e.g., a trademark or a service mark) for the same goods or services. See 15 U.S.C. §1064(5)(B) (providing for cancellation of a registered certification mark if the registrant engages in the production or marketing of any goods or services to which the certification mark is applied); In re Monsanto Co., 201 USPQ 864, 868-69 (TTAB 1978); TMEP §1306.05(a). Likewise, if a mark is registered as something other than a certification mark, the same owner may not register the mark as a certification mark for the same goods or services. In these circumstances, the applied-for mark must be refused under Trademark Act §§4 and 14(5)(B). 15 U.S.C. §§1054, 1064(5)(B); see also 37 C.F.R. §2.45; TMEP §1306.05(a).
For these purposes, two marks need not be identical, but any differences must be so insignificant that the marks would still be viewed as essentially the same. Even small variations in wording or design, if meaningful, can create different marks that may coexist on the register. See TMEP §1306.05(a).