Abercrombie & Fitch Co. v. Hunting World, Inc.
In United States trademark law, Abercrombie & Fitch Co. v. Hunting World, 537 F.2d 4 (2nd Cir. 1976) established the spectrum of trademark distinctiveness in the US, breaking trademarks into classes which are accorded differing degrees of protection. Courts often speak of marks falling along the following "spectrum of distinctiveness," also known within the US as the "Abercrombie classification" or "Abercrombie factors". The lawsuit was brought by Abercrombie & Fitch Co. against Hunting World, Inc. regarding Abercrombie's trademark on the word "Safari", and resulting in Abercrombie's loss of the trademark. The spectrum of distinctiveness The Abercrombie court determined that descriptive words can get trademark protection if they develop a secondary meaning. The protection only exists for source-designating uses of the word, not descriptive or generic uses of the word. Fanciful marks A fanciful / inherently distinctive trademark is prima facie registrable, and comprises an entirely invented or "fanciful" sign. For example, "Kodak" had no meaning before it was adopted and used as a trademark in relation to goods, whether photographic goods or otherwise. Invented marks are neologisms which will not previously have been found in any dictionary. Arbitrary marks An arbitrary trademark is usually a common word which is used