The sound of a motorcycle
Is the sound of a motorcycle distinguishable enough to be worthy of a trademark? Harley-Davidson sure thought so. The motorcycle company filed a trademark application in 1994 for the insane roar their motorcycles make.
But, after a costly road to nowhere, they dropped their claim in 2000. It was a good choice, considering that, out of 730,000 active trademarks as of 1998, only 23 had been issued to protect a sound, according to the Los Angeles Times.