NEW YORK – Although it remains to be seen what McDonald’s plans to do with the concept, a company spokesperson confirms that the QSR recently trademarked the term McBrunch, according to BurgerBusiness.com.

McDonald’s Corp. filed a federal trademark registration in July for the term McBrunch. However, this isn’t the first time the QSR has hinted at a brunch business: McDonald's applied for the McBrunch trademark in 2001 but abandoned the application, notes the news source.

With the breakfast wars continuing among the fast-food giants, launching a brunch might be under consideration. McDonald’s has suffered another dip in same-store sales, reporting a 3.7% decline in global same-store sales earlier this week, according to USA Today. “That ranks as the company's worst global same-store sales results in more than a decade,” noted the newspaper.

The QSR has been testing upscale morning daypart fare this year, such as breakfast pastries in San Diego and mini bundt cakes in Boca Raton, Florida, and in Nevada, notes BurgerBusiness.com.

Other QSRs have attempted brunch, notes the news source. Four years ago Burger King tested a brunch menu that featured nonalcoholic mimosas, a BK Ciabatta Breakfast Sandwich and a Whopper burger. The idea was abandoned, but in May the chain launched a "Burgers at Breakfast" program with its Whoppers.