In yet another failure-to-function case, the Board affirmed a
refusal to register INTELLIGENCE OF THINGS as a
service mark for supply chain management services, custom
manufacture of electronics, and engineering services. Third-party
uses of, and media references to, the phrase convinced the Board
that INTELLIGENCE OF THINGS does not "perform the desired
service mark function and does not fall withing the Act's
definition of a service mark." In re Flex Ltd., Serial Nos. 86453853 and
86493735 (December 9, 2019) [not precedential] (Opinion by Judge
Michael B. Adlin).
The evidence revealed that third parties use INTELLIGENCE OF
THINGS to refer to "the ongoing development and next phase of
the Internet of Things ("IoT") [i.e., the
interconnectivity of digital devices via the Internet and to each
other], and specifically its increasing use of artificial
intelligence ("AI")." The Board found that
INTELLIGENCE OF THINGS "would be perceived not as a mark but
as a merely
