Enhance Your Game-Day Experience with These Snack Innovations
As the teams prepare for The Big Game, intellectual property protections and innovations help create excitement around the game. The Super Bowl, which is the second-highest food consumption day in the United States following Thanksgiving, showcases how IP plays a big part in how we fans experience the game. From trademarked phrases and team logos to creative snacks and the trays that serve them, intellectual property enhances our game-day experience in many ways.
Patented Innovations for the Ultimate Watch Party
1. Beverage Can, US D732,402
Anheuser Busch Inc. was granted a design patent for this style of can in 2015 (USD732402S1). Does it look familiar? Many of the beverages we enjoy today come in cans, and the history of cans dates back to the first tin cans in the 1800s. On Super Bowl Sunday, Americans consume over 325 million gallons of beer, spending around $1.3 billion on beer in the two weeks leading up to the game and an additional $1 billion during the game itself. Beer tops the list of beverages at Super Bowl parties, with 41% of Americans planning to serve or drink beer during the event.
2. Pizza Box, US D767,989
Pizza Hut was granted a design patent for this style of pizza box in 2016. The history of the pizza box is an interesting one. The idea for pizza boxes dates back to when pizza first became popular internationally after World War II.
In the 1960s, a man named Tom Monaghan, who later founded Domino’s Pizza, revolutionized pizza delivery when he patented the first corrugated cardboard pizza box. This first design was simple and featured a flat, rectangular shape with tall edges to keep the pizza from sliding around during transport. It was also lightweight and inexpensive to produce.
This began years of innovation related to methods of holding foods, including pizza. Over the years, pizza companies learned to make pizza boxes that better retained heat, made use of recycled cardboard, and even included their logos on the top. Different variations of how the box folds is another way designs have varied.
3. Football Helmet-Shaped Pasta, US D680,296
Kraft Foods was granted this design patent in 2012. Guillermo Haro, one of the inventors listed on the patent, is also credited with many other pasta shapes, such as a rainbow, bear, pumpkin and dolphin. Football helmets have been a staple of the game since the 1920s, evolving from leather to plastic in the 1940s. The first plastic helmet was patented by John T. Riddell, Sr. and John T. Riddell, Jr. in 1942. Plastic helmets were safer and withstood wet conditions better than leather, allowing for the introduction of colored helmets. Today, football helmets continue to evolve to make the game safer for players.
4. Seat Arm Cup Holder for Snack Foods, US 8,550,550
In 2013, Joseph Cassese and James Hieswa were granted a utility patent for this seat arm cup holder for snack foods. Talk about convenience! This snack holder includes multiple sections for holding snack food or additional cups. It can fit into the armrest of a seat if you have one. You wouldn’t have to miss a moment of the game – or commercials with this in hand!
These patented items demonstrate how inventive ideas can enhance the entire game-day experience. No matter which team you want to win, or if you’re #teamsnacks, the Super Bowl is rich with historic intellectual property.
At Suiter Swantz IP, we are proud to support and protect innovators and entrepreneurs. If you have questions about patents or trademarks, or need assistance with protecting your own intellectual property, feel free to reach out to us.
Suiter Swantz IP is a full-service intellectual property law firm providing client-centric patent, trademark, and copyright services. If you need assistance with an intellectual property matter and would like to speak with one of our attorneys, please contact us at info@suiter.com.