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May 06, 2005

Girl Scout Cookies Protected By Intellectual Property - Kinda

The term "Girl Scout Cookies" is a registered trademark (Reg. # 0964309) with a first use date in 1936. However, the most popular cookies sold by the Girl Scouts isn't a registered trademark. In fact, the Girl Scouts have never applied for the trademark on "Thin Mints."

I really can't figure out the reason behind the lack of any trademark for "Thin Mints." It's pretty likely that the term would be considered descriptive. After all, the cookie is a mint flavored cookie that's pretty thin. However, in trademark law, you can get a trademark on a descriptive term as long as it has secondary meaning. I tried a little experiment in the office to determine whether the requisite secondary meaning was present. Unfortunately, I got mixed results when I asked the question "What does the term 'thin mint' mean to you?" Some stated that it's a girl scout cookie. However, other responses included references to York Peppermint Patties, Andes® mints, and Baskin Robbins® Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream.

I still think that "Thin Mints" refer to Girl Scout cookies. The other responses I got referred to mints that were thin, but I suspect that the Girl Scouts have established a secondary meaning for the term "Thin Mints."

Interestingly, Thin Mints are the one cookie created by both bakeries licensed by the Girl Scouts to make cookies. The other cookies may look the same, but they have different names. It seems that ABC/Interbake Foods uses pretty descriptive terms for its cookies: Carmel Delites, Peanut Butter Patties, Classic Shortbread, Peanut Butter Sandwiches, Animal Treasures, and Thin Mints. Little Brownie Bakers, on the other hand, typically uses trademarks for its cookies: Samoas®, Tagalongs®, Trefoils, Do-Si-Dos®, All Abouts, Double Dutch®, Lemon Coolers®, and Thin Mints. Interestingly, the Kellog Corporation, which owns Little Brownie Bakers, owns the trademarks.

For more information on Girl Scout cookies, click here.

Posted by Melody Wirz at 03:26 PM.
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