Facebook set to trademark “face”

Social networking giant Facebook is now a step closer to trademarking the word “face” in certain circumstances.

While the company filed an initial application five years ago with the US Patent and Trademark Office, a new “notice of allowance” has been lodged.

This means that the company now has half a year to show that it actually uses that trademark and pay a fee.

But the application doesn’t mean Facebook will have total control of the word “Face”. Instead, it would apply in online forums for the “transmission of messages among computer users in the field of general interest and concerning social and entertainment subject matter”.