Opinion ID: 2657202
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: Strength of the TAP Mark

Text: Likelihood of confusion depends partly on the senior mark’s strength, i.e., its capacity to indicate the source of the goods with which it is used. Water Pik, 726 F.3d at 1151. Strength has two components: conceptual strength, or the mark’s place on the spectrum of distinctiveness; and commercial strength, or its level of recognition in the marketplace. See King of the Mountain, 185 F.3d at 1093. The district court concluded that Hornady’s TAP mark was both conceptually and commercially strong, and thus weighed the strength factor in Hornady’s favor.
Conceptual strength is measured on a spectrum of distinctiveness ranging along the following five categories (from least to most distinctive): (1) generic, (2) descriptive, (3) suggestive, (4) arbitrary, and (5) fanciful. Water Pik, 726 F.3d at 1152. Only suggestive, arbitrary, and fanciful marks are considered strong in and of themselves. Id. The district court held that Hornady’s mark was - 18 - suggestive because the definition of “tap” (to strike someone or something with a quick, light blow) and the TAP acronym (Tactical Application Police) suggest the features of TAP products. Aplee. Br. Att. 22. Although it calls that holding “defensible,” DoubleTap argues that TAP is merely descriptive. Aplee. Br. 55. The determination whether a mark is descriptive or suggestive is difficult, and we have endorsed a helpful test for distinguishing between the two categories: suggestive terms “require the buyer to use thought, imagination, or perception to connect the mark with the goods,” whereas descriptive terms “directly convey to the buyer the ingredients, qualities, or characteristics of the product.” Water Pik, 726 F.3d at 1152-53 (internal quotation marks omitted). Granting all reasonable inferences in Hornady’s favor, we agree that “TAP” is suggestive of the features of Hornady’s products. “TAP” does not directly convey the characteristics of the product, bullets, in a way that marks such as “After Tan post-tanning lotion” or “5 Minute glue” do. See George & Co. v. Imagination Entm’t Ltd., 575 F.3d 383, 394 (4th Cir. 2009). Even when the acronym is defined, “TAP” requires the consumer to use imagination to appreciate the nature of Hornady’s product: police agencies are frequent purchasers of ammunition; police are likely to seek out certain qualities in the ammunition they purchase; a product targeted at police is likely to have these qualities. See 2 McCarthy on Trademarks and Unfair Competition § 11:67 (4th ed. 2013). TAP is thus suggestive and conceptually strong. - 19 -
Commercial strength is “the marketplace recognition value of the mark.” King of the Mountain, 185 F.3d at 1093. It is analogous to secondary meaning. Water Pik, 726 F.3d at 1154. 13 We have identified several factors as helpful in evaluating secondary meaning, including direct evidence of recognition by consumers and circumstantial evidence regarding: (1) the length and manner of the mark’s use, (2) the nature and extent of advertising and promotion of the mark, and (3) the efforts made to promote a conscious connection, in the public’s mind, between the mark and a particular product. Id. The district court concluded that Hornady’s advertising efforts established the commercial strength of its mark; DoubleTap challenges that conclusion. Aplee. Br. 55-56. Viewing the evidence in Hornady’s favor, we agree that TAP is commercially strong. First, the TAP mark has been on the market nearly 17 years. Second, there was evidence that Hornady spent hundreds of thousands of dollars advertising its TAP products in numerous magazines, on two television channels, at several trade shows, and on its two websites. Aplt. App. 1047-48. These factors demonstrated that Hornady fostered a conscious connection in the public’s mind between the TAP mark and its products. Because TAP is conceptually and commercially strong, the district court 13 Although secondary meaning is presumed, the fact that Hornady’s mark is statutorily incontestible does not resolve the commercial strength inquiry. See Water Pik, 726 F.3d at 1154 n.5. - 20 - correctly weighed this factor in Hornady’s favor.