S. Usha - (1.) THE original appeal arising from the order dated 09.11.2006 passed by the Deputy Registrar of Trade Marks allowing the opposition No. KOL -200894 and refusing registration No. 1128064 in Class 30, under the provisions of the Trade Marks Act, 1999. The appellant herein filed an application for registration of the trade mark SNAX under No. 1128064 in class 30 on 22.08.2002. They claimed user since 01.04.1965. The said application was advertised before acceptance in the Trade Marks Journal No. 1328 Supp (2) dated 14.02.2005 at page 2621.
(2.) THE respondents herein opposed the registration of the impugned trade mark on various grounds. The appellant herein filed their counter statement. On completion of the pleadings, the respondent No. 2 herein passed the impugned order. The learned Registrar held that the word SNAX is not only phonetically equivalent but also visually and structurally equivalent to the English word Snacks. The word snacks means "a light, casual or a hurried meal, a small amount of food eaten between meals." The word snacks is a descriptive term and the question arises as to whether the impugned mark which is undoubtedly a variant of this dictionary word can be registered as a trade mark or not.
(3.) IN , 1958 RPC 175 (Electrix Case) it was held that, "if a word in its proper spelling is directly descriptive, it is to be so considered even if it is misspelled, for any phonetic equivalent of an unregistrable word is itself unregistrable.";