Rebel cartoon stick figure with green hair pointing at a chalkboard with “Hologram Marks” written in large chalk letters — representing a blog post about hologram marks and non-traditional trademarks.

Non-traditional trademarks are unconventional and unique forms of trademarks. Non-traditional trademarks are less common than traditional trademarks (and certification marks and collective marks) but provide a creative and innovative way for businesses to establish and protect their brand identities.

The largest category of non-traditional trademarks is trade dress, which includes the overall look and feel of a product, product packaging, or service. Trade dress can include color marks, configuration marks, position marks, repeating pattern marks, shape marks, and texture marks. Other (non-trade dress) types of non-traditional trademarks include hologram marks, motion marks, scent marks, sound marks, and taste marks.

A hologram mark protects distinctive hologram(s) associated with a brand, specifically, three-dimensional images that change appearance when viewed from different angles. A hologram mark is sometimes also known as a holographic mark or a holograph mark. In order to be registered as a trademark, a hologram mark must be used in connection with a good or a service and distinctively identify the brand owner (i.e., function as a trademark), and the trademark owner must provide evidence that the hologram mark is recognized by consumers to be a trademark.

There are currently less than 30 active hologram trademark registrations in the US. The earliest, still active hologram mark is the Ultra PRO Card Protector Sleeve hologram mark [1], first used in 1991 and first registered in 1998 in connection with plastic pages for containing collectible cards, photographs and the like.

Other long-lasting, still active hologram marks include the Upper Deck hologram marks [2], first used in 1993 and first registered in 2002 in connection with autographed sports memorabilia; the Fair & White Paris hologram mark [3], first used in 2003 and first registered in 2005 for cosmetics; and the American Express Card hologram mark [4], first used in 2001 and first registered in 2006 for charge card and credit card services.

Want to search for hologram marks yourself? Head over to https://tmsearch.uspto.gov/, select “Field tag and Search Builder” from the drop down box on the left, and try the following search string: DE:(hologram* holographic* holograph*) AND LD:true AND RG:*principal*

Once you have search results, over on the left click on “Sort” and select “Serial (0-9)” to see hologram marks sorted oldest to newest or “Serial (9-0)” to see hologram marks sorted newest to oldest by filing date. Searching isn’t an exact science (thank you outdated trademark search tools!), so beware lots of false positives and incomplete or missing results. Have fun!

Want to learn more about trademarks? Check out our posts on 5 More Key Facts About Trademarks, Introduction, and the US TM Registration Process.