Question

Certain brand names, such as Kleenex or Xerox, have become _______, because they are so commonly identified with a specific product category that consumers use these names to refer to any product in that category regardless of the manufacturer.

Answer 1

Answer: Certain brand names, such as Kleenex or Xerox, have become generic name.

Explanation:

Generic name is the term used to refer a product with its brand name rather than the product itself. Kleenex  and Xerox are the brand names of the products. Xerox is photocopying product and Kleenex is the brand name for wet wipes. People commonly use the word Kleenex instead of tissues or wet wipes.

This process can be called as genericization and companies loose their trademarks due to these usage of names. These generic names have wide spread popularity.