It’s fundamental that trademark registration is available to only those words, phrases, designs or combinations that function as trademarks. To function as a trademark, such a word, design, or combination must be perceived as a source indicator—a symbol of the goodwill of the company that manufactures, produces, or distributes goods under the mark. Or, as it’s often put in the United States, it must be perceived as a "brand."
It would seem to be axiomatic, then, that material that functions purely as an adornment or a decoration is not entitled to protection as a trademark. Nevertheless, many U.S. trademark registration applicants have been surprised to receive a refusal of registration on the grounds that the proposed mark does not function as a trademark at all, but consists of material that is "merely ornamental." The disappointment may sometimes arise from the fact that many trademark applicants—and even some trademark attorneys—have an insufficient understanding of what it is
