Patent Office Denies Dunkin' Donuts 'Best Coffee in America'

The claim is 'insufficient and unpersuasive,' says government

You may very well be convinced that you're the best around - that nothing's gonna ever keep you down - but does that mean the state should officially acknowledge it?

Dunkin' Donuts learned the answer to that question recently when it was denied the right to trademark its claim of being the "Best Coffee in America." The US Patent and Trademark Office rejected the chain's request, reports Business Insider, by pointing out that merely describing one's self as the "best" at fill-in-the-blank isn't sufficient to grant proprietary rights in the claim.

According to the agency, Dunkin' Donuts' "informational slogan is nothing more than a claim of superiority and is insufficient and unpersuasive."

As BI's Laura Stampler observes, other companies have likewise tried to get away with the "Best" label in the past but without success, thanks to the folks at the USPTO. In a failed trademark bid in 1999, beer maker Sam Adams was unable to legally refer to its brew as the "best" in America even after it was judged to be just that in a nationwide contest.

Via Business Insider.

Does it make sense for a company to trademark the claim of being the "best"?

[joyshusband]

Sure, and let's charge $1,000,000.00 per trademark.

[stepped_in_it]

Too cheap.....5,000,000.00 sounds better. And paid up front whether the trademark patent is granted or not!

[joyshusband]

@stepped_in_it ok,$5,000,000.00 it is, lets do it.

[AceLuby]

Of course it doesn't make sense. Nobody is 'best' forever.

[dances-weebles]

my first wife said that i was the best ever, and now my second wife is making the same claim. should i trademark myself, too?

[CanisCanemEdit]

@Aceluby - Best Buy is. :)

[PoliticalSpice]

@dances-weebles
If you do and some woman acts on it your wife might hire the est divorce lawyer she can find..

[Keyjo]

I've watched them make coffee at Dunkin' Donuts, as well as 7-Eleven, my favorite bars, numerous other venues. They all make it pretty much the same way that I do at home with my Mister Coffee (tm).
I drive around doing my job and I see more signs than I care to count touting "the best" ribs, burgers, chicken wings, etc...... Also, several signs proclaiming, "the coldest beer in town," especially in the summer.
"The Best," is almost always a baseless claim. Unless you have the trophies and blue ribbons to prove it time and again, and as we read, even that didn't work for Sam Adams.

[woodtick57]

try a french press or a percolator, you will get a much better brew, IMO...

[Keyjo]

@woodtick57
Do you think an old fashioned percolator is better than today's coffee makers?
Of course freshly ground is better, if you have the time for all that. I considered a maker with the grinder attached, but the consumer ratings weren't all that hot, and apparently neither was the coffee temperature.

[mimi57]

@Keyjo According to my sources...Google.. PT's Coffee Roasting Co. the 'best' coffee is~ Colombia La Esperanza Ceiro Azul Geisha, and it's just 35.00 for 8 ozs. I don't think I could remember the name, even
if I wanted to spend that outrageous amount of money.

[Keyjo]

@mimi57
Nor is even the world's BEST coffee enough to get me to Topeka! LOL

[mimi57]

@Keyjo I don't live near Topeka...but, I do think the percolators make the best coffee, it's just that you probably
have to go to an antique store to get one. I don't think they make them anymore. I have a one cup Keurig, it's
convenient, but the coffee's just okay...better than Dunkin's.

[Hurricane74]

The US Patent Office is a joke anymore, at least they stumbled over the right answer this time.

[hwyangel]

I think the coffee at the pilot truck stops is alot better. But even then, Canada has better coffee than we do.

[DerivePI]

its the accent - eh?

[NO-BAMA]

Exactly right about Pilots coffee. Colombian dark roast with some French vanilla creamer. Finishing up a cup right now.

[hwyangel]

@DerivePI
lol, no. But Canadians do take their coffee seriously.

[hwyangel]

@NO-BAMA

I'm looking forward to a cup here soon. I'm just a few miles away from the Pilot in Murfreesboro TN, waiting for my 10 turn over. Sitting here sniffing my empty cup till then, lol.

[DARSB]

Pilot does pretty well with their java. I think it's the cleanliness of their machines. Nothing ruins a good cup of joe faster than bitter oils from yesterday's brew.

[DerivePI]

As long as people can sue for damages when they determine it is falsely advertising a claim. Trademark or not, a sales pitch can not be an out and out lie. The half truths are bad enough.

[MongoAPillager]

the ones i like best are(voted best coffee or whatever)and yet know body knows who voted for them or who put up the supposed poll,D.D. coffee always tastes burnt to me?

[mimi57]

I like strong Italian coffee, or the closest you can get here.

[ACTSmom]

I love Dunkin Donuts...it's that nasty Starbucks that tastes burnt!

[MongoAPillager]

i guess i,m kinda of a sissy when it comes to coffee,i like lots hazelnut creamer,2 or 3 stevia packets,i like the irving stores coffee as any size container is only a buck,i used to bring in my thermous and get a days worth of joe for a buck

[Denizen_Kate]

Sorry, Dunkin', I love coffee and I've tried yours, and you aren't nearly the best.

Seriously, they can claim it in advertising all they want, but patenting "the best" is ridiculous, because somebody is always going to come up with better sooner or later.

[mimi57]

We agree!!!(:...and didn't we all think we were the "best" at one time!?!..

[Denizen_Kate]

@mimi57 - I'm still the best at some things, but you'll never get me to admit what those are!:)

[stepped_in_it]

@mimi57 I was "the best at one time"....now I'm the best FOR one time.....LMBO

[Sharpshooter]

@Denizen_Kate It's certainly not clear, cogent thinking or reading comprehension.... They were seeking a Trademark, not patent. There is a huge difference. Obtaining a trademark "best coffee in America" would allow them to advertise such without anyone else making the same claim without facing legal action from them....... Many trademarks make similar claims but on a more narrow scope. The Village Voice has a trademark on the phrase "The best of..." They are suing Yelp for use of the same phrase on their phone app defining the location of specific outstanding vendors......... DD was just playing the game, you won't be granted anything unless you ASK.

[mimi57]

@stepped_in_it That's all that counts!(:

[mimi57]

I really don't like Dunkin' Donuts coffee and I don't eat donuts, if I did it wouldn't be theirs they are too sweet. I'll
have a Twinkie!(:

[woodtick57]

not any more you won't!

[mimi57]

@woodtick57 I stocked up Mr. Woodtick 57...LOL

[woodtick57]

@mimi57

So Dunkin Donuts are too sweet but Twinkies are not? hmmm....

[mimi57]

@woodtick57 I haven't had a Twinkie since I was 10, but now that you can't get them, I want one. And , yes,
Dunkin's are too sugary.. see , you'll even argue about donut's. Geesh!!!

[woodtick57]

@mimi57

i'll point out inconsistent and illogical posts, yes.

[jessejaymes]

dunkin donuts should have to pay the Patent office for wasting their time dealing with this application.

[RobertJHarsh]

I like their donuts. YUMMY.

[ACTSmom]

Even though I could agree with Dunkin Donuts on their opinion, that's all it is. Everybody has different tastes...otherwise Starbucks would never have made it out of Seattle with its old burned nasty coffee taste. Actually, I think it's all the sugar, cream, & caramel that people actually crave from Starbucks!

[Hireman]

Not at all. "Best" is an opinion.

[Atriedes53]

Zabar's has the best coffee. You call in your order and it's then roasted and shipped out.

[IMAQT]

In other news, Starbucks was allowed to advertise as "the most expensive cup of coffee in America", because there was no denying that fact.

[MRMacrum]

It certainly does not make sense for Dunkin Donuts to claim they are the "best" of anything. McDonalds has better coffee in my opinion. But the "best" coffee I know of is the coffee I brew for myself. Claiming to be the best is not quantifiable unless you are talking about quarterbacks. ;-)

[Zazziness]

I believe "the best" coffee is acknowledged to be kopi luwak though I haven't tried it and can't testify from personal experiencec. To make that, civet cats eat the coffee beans, then excrete them, then the beans are carefully gathered, cleaned. It's the most expensive coffee in the world, that's for sure! I think it would be better if Dunkin' Donuts did not venture into that field...

[FollowTheMoney]

Advertisers make false claims all the time, why should Dunkin' Donuts be left out?

[Jlope]

No, but companies constantly bend words to false advertise and use all sorts of gimmicks and contract clauses, so I don't see why they are legislating advertising all of a sudden. I have seen a million advertisements of companies saying "we're number one in the state/nation/world. I don't understand why our legislative bodies are so selective in their enforcements of law.

[PoliticalSpice]

B.P . Can claim to be best pollutor of the gulf coast...