Former President Donald Trump’s Social media platform, Truth Social, Has been denied a trademark by The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.
Josh Gerben, a trademark lawyer in Washington, D.C., was the first to find and report the denial.
The USPTO has refused Donald Trump's trademark application for "TRUTH SOCIAL."
The basis of the refusal is the existence of multiple pre-existing "TRUTH" trademarks.
Trump will have 6 months to file a response and argue against the refusal. #DonaldTrump #TruthSocial pic.twitter.com/mPBLbQ1V3d
— Josh Gerben (@JoshGerben) August 25, 2022
In the notice of denial from August 2, it was cited that the social media app Vero — True Social and the Truth Network, a Christian radio platform both used similar phrasing.
The patent office noted that both companies use “true” and “truth” as the dominant wording in their names. The office said that they “communicate the same idea of being honest or emphasizing fact while networking socially.”
The Patent Office says that Truth Social’s name is too similar and could be “confused, mistaken or deceived as to the commercial source of the goods and/or services of the parties.”
Trump may be able to negotiate with the companies over the wording and has until February to appeal the decision.
Truth Social has faced multiple setbacks.
It has been obvious that powers at be have been after Trump and all that surrounds him. In June, a company planning to buy Truth Social said that the deal may collapse because they have been subpoenaed by a federal grand jury.
The deal is already being investigated by the Securities and Exchange Commission. This is after allegations that the companies may have violated merger laws, according to a report from Business Insider.
Truth Social was created after the former president was banned from Twitter and most other mainstream platforms.