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European Union to accede to Geneva Act; Brexit uncertainty means United Kingdom poised to become GI battleground

The European Parliament's Legal Affairs Committee has endorsed the European Union acceding to the Geneva Act – a move that could propel the issue of geographical indications back to the top of the trade deal agenda as the United Kingdom looks to its post-Brexit future.

13 Mar 2019

Don't panic? What the UK government’s second major Brexit defeat means for trademark owners

UK prime minister Theresa May suffered a second catastrophic defeat in as many months as the House of Commons rejected her Brexit deal last night. We take a look at what this latest development means for trademark owners.

4 Mar 2019

New Brexit guidelines give reassurance to rights holders, but attorneys’ rights remain uncertain

New guidelines reaffirm the UK's commitment to protecting existing EU trademarks and to recognising the priority date of pending European applications. But UK attorneys remain none the wiser about their EUIPO rights of representation.

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Today

Polo logo appeal dismissed: the importance of evidence of use and registrations

The EUIPO Board of Appeal has decided that a declaration of invalidity filed by Style & Taste against Polo/Lauren’s polo logo did not contain sufficient evidence to support the claim. Read more

22 Mar 2019

General Court upholds rejection of STREAMS trademark application

In DeepMind Technologies Ltd v EUIPO, the EU General Court has confirmed that the mark STREAMS was descriptive of goods and services in Classes 9 and 42 and should be refused under Article 7(1)(c) of EU Regulation 207/2009. Read more

21 Mar 2019

General Court: consumers perceive signs as a whole

The EU General Court has dismissed an appeal of the Fifth Board of Appeals’ decision concerning the EU mark VERA GREEN and earlier LAVERA marks. The court held that consumers generally perceive signs as a whole and do not analyse their various details. Read more

14 Mar 2019

CJEU considers trademarks with common element 'so' and finds likelihood of confusion

When is a single common element sufficient to create a likelihood of confusion? A decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union in a case involving the mark SO’BIO ĒTIC and earlier SO…? marks illustrates the difficulties in answering that question. Read more

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Anti-counterfeiting

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8 Feb 2019

Irish Whiskey GI protection, no-deal Brexit anti-counterfeiting “travesty”, and Alibaba and eBay on fakes: news digest

In our latest round-up, we look at Brainbase raising money to bolster its licensing platform, the discovery of fake leukaemia drugs, the EUIPO turning to blockchain to fight counterfeiting, and much more. Read more

29 Jan 2019

WHOIS woes, IP mind maps, and understanding counterfeiters: takeaways on managing trademark assets

Highlights from our Managing Trademark Assets Europe event, wherein senior brand professionals shared insights on budget management, fighting counterfeits with limited resources, and more. Read more

29 Nov 2018

European Union and United States announce record-breaking counterfeits crackdown; do domain seizures actually train infringers?

This week, both Europol and ICE reported record-breaking numbers in regard to takedowns of domain names selling counterfeit products. One expert tells us that infringers have found an easy solution to this temporary obstacle. Read more

7 Jun 2018

New EUIPO report charts increasing sophistication and diversification of counterfeiters

The EUIPO has released a new report, compiling research since 2013, to present a comprehensive and updated picture of the scope and impact of IP rights infringement in the European Union. Read more

Brand management

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28 Feb 2019

How to manage brands at a technology licensing company – exclusive interview with Arm’s David Llewellyn

Arm Holdings’ head of trademarks explains how he made the company’s brand function more visible to colleagues and licensing partners, and why he is a strong advocate of bringing trademark work in-house. Read more

21 Dec 2018

Cybersecurity insurance: an opportunity for online brand protection?

Cyberinsurance has become an indispensable tool in the management of internet-based risks and a key asset when it comes to online brand protection strategies. Read more

15 Nov 2018

“No clarity on continued rights of representation”: trademark experts have their say on the draft Brexit withdrawal text

While uncertainty over the future of the agreed Brexit withdrawal text remains, the 585-page document provides crucial insight into the planned treatment of intellectual property – including rights of representation, exhaustion and the cost-free cloning of rights. Read more

15 Oct 2018

Genericism: is the trademark education video the new norm?

The recent Velcro video was highly successful in generating discussion about the use of the company’s trademark, providing crucial insight into brand communication strategies. Read more

Enforcement and litigation

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Today

Polo logo appeal dismissed: the importance of evidence of use and registrations

The EUIPO Board of Appeal has decided that a declaration of invalidity filed by Style & Taste against Polo/Lauren’s polo logo did not contain sufficient evidence to support the claim. Read more

22 Mar 2019

General Court upholds rejection of STREAMS trademark application

14 Mar 2019

CJEU considers trademarks with common element 'so' and finds likelihood of confusion

11 Mar 2019

Blow for Apple as General Court finds that one cannot compare apples with pears

In a blow to US tech giant Apple Inc, the EU General Court has annulled a decision of the EUIPO in which the latter had upheld Apple’s opposition against the registration of the figurative mark PEAR for information and communications technology-related goods and services based on its famous apple logo mark. Read more

Goverment/policy

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24 Oct 2018

The state of statistics – academic claims “more can be done” with trademark data

A new academic paper has found that researchers and policymakers should make more use of trademark portfolio data – even using such information instead of patent data in some instances. Read more

23 Oct 2018

GI face-off – debating current geographical indication protections

We bring together two organisations with different perspectives on geographical indications to discuss the best route forward for this unique form of protection. Read more

2 Oct 2018

“The EUIPO should lead on enforcement” – trademark community reacts to Archambeau appointment

National IP offices within the European Union, key trademark associations and leading filing law firms in the EU react to the appointment of Christian Archambeau as the new executive director of the EUIPO. Read more

25 Sep 2018

UK confirms post-Brexit trademark plans; ambiguities and uncertainties remain

UK government releases a swathe of technical notices that set out likely scenarios in the event of a ‘no-deal Brexit’. When it comes to trademark and design rights, significant questions remain. Read more

Law firms

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24 Aug 2018

A-Z of EU trademark court practice and performance: Netherlands to Slovenia

In the fourth of our five-part series, trademark counsel from law firms across Europe provide an overview of the performance of their countries’ EU trademark courts over the past two years. Read more

7 Aug 2018

Audi launches anti-counterfeiting campaign, YouTube brand safety fiasco and TMview expands: news round-up

In our latest round-up, we look at the expansion of the EUIPO’s TMview search platform, Scotch Whisky attaining GI protection in South Africa, Chinese trademarks continuing rapid growth rate, and much more. Read more

27 Feb 2018

No Brexit talk between IP offices, Scooby Doo infringement and Syria establishes trademark court: news round-up

In the latest round-up, we look the latest IP case data from Saudi Arabia, the establishment of a trademark court in Syria, and warnings over counterfeit security certificates. Read more

23 Feb 2018

Brexit update, plain packaging begins in Ireland, and first trademark ruling in Barbados: news round-up

In this round-up edition, we look at the latest Brexit developments from a trademark perspective, Hershey’s hawkish eye over the marijuana industry, and the result from the first ever trademark dispute in Barbados. Read more

IP offices

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27 Feb 2019

IP offices going above and beyond

In exclusive research, WTR looks at the innovative non-core tools and services being offered by national IP registries around the world. Read more

27 Feb 2019

IP offices of EU, Chile, Singapore and Spain named most innovative in the world

In exclusive research from WTR, the EUIPO has been ranked as the most innovative IP office in the world for the third year in a row. Closely behind are the registries of Chile, Singapore and Spain. Read more

16 Jan 2019

What the UK government’s Brexit deal defeat means for trademark owners

The UK government suffered a catastrophic defeat on Tuesday night after the House of Commons firmly rejected its Brexit deal. We take a look at what the result means for trademark owners, including a claim that rights holders are “back at square one". Read more

13 Nov 2018

Good news on costs but Brexit hearing suggests slow progress on issue of EUIPO representation

In an evidence session focused on UK plans for the treatment of intellectual property post-Brexit, the ‘no cost’ transfer of EU trademark rights to the national register was reconfirmed. However, big questions remain over EUIPO representation and the future GIs regime. Read more

Online

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9 Jan 2019

Is Brexit spurring a ‘.eu’ domain exit?

The latest Progress Report released by EURid has revealed a drop in the overall number of registrations under ‘.eu’. Is the uncertainty surrounding Brexit a factor in the decrease in the number of domain name registrations and renewals? Read more

12 Sep 2018

The future of trademarks

Global brand owners face increasing challenges in protecting, managing and enforcing their IP rights. These include challenges arising from new technologies, new business models and new markets. Read more

20 Jul 2018

“E-commerce platforms make huge efforts to protect brands’ rights”: exclusive interview with Groupon’s Pablo Rodriguez

Pablo Amat Rodriguez talks to us about his IP work at e-commerce brand Groupon. He reveals how he meets the distinctive IP challenges the trademark department faces, working with law firms, and much more. Read more

9 Jul 2018

Data authorities respond to ICANN call for help; WHOIS future left up in the air

The European Data Protection Board has responded to ICANN’s call for guidance to enable the development a GDPR-compliant WHOIS model. The document raises the prospect that a more conservative approach to WHOIS data publication will result. Read more

Portfolio management

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6 Mar 2019

MOULDPRO case: General Court confirms that no 'agent-principal' relationship between parties had been established

In Mouldpro v EUIPO, the General Court has upheld a decision of the EUIPO Fourth Board of Appeal rejecting an application for a declaration of invalidity of the word mark MOULDPRO. The decision calls into question the definition of the agent-principal relationship. Read more

4 Mar 2019

Broken heart for Bayer? General Court upholds refusal to register figurative mark representing a heart

The EU General Court has confirmed that a figurative mark applied for by Bayer would be perceived by the relevant public as the representation of a heart and, therefore, as a reference to the fact that the services in question concerned the field of cardiology. Read more

1 Mar 2019

ETNIA versus ETNIK: a litany of errors

The EU General Court has upheld a EUIPO decision in opposition proceedings filed by Etnia Dreams against the registration of the mark ETNIK. The opponent had made a series of errors which led the EUIPO to find that the opposition was inadmissible. Read more

28 Feb 2019

How to manage brands at a technology licensing company – exclusive interview with Arm’s David Llewellyn

Trademark law

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21 Feb 2019

Why every trademark lawyer should spend time in-house: exclusive interview with Bacardi’s Anna Panka

While legal know-how is critical for law firm practitioners, an understanding of the corporate business environment should not be underestimated. That is the message conveyed by Anna Panka, senior counsel at Bacardi, in an exclusive interview with WTR. Read more

31 Jan 2019

L’Oreal revealed as top filer of EU trademarks in 2018 as applications to EUIPO rise 5%

In an exclusive guest post, Robert Reading from CompuMark reveals the top corporate filers at the EUIPO in 2018 and looks at some of the key trends from the registry in the past 12 months. Read more

7 Jan 2019

Design rights: European union

In the European Union, the appearance of all industrial and handicraft items, product parts, packaging, get-up, graphic symbols and typographic typefaces is protectable as a design. Read more

2 Jan 2019

Brexit in focus: end-of-year review from the UKIPO

While Brexit has been the primary focus of many practitioners in the United Kingdom, the UK Intellectual Property Office witnessed various other changes and developments in 2018. Read more

latest

Polo logo appeal dismissed: the importance of evidence of use and registrations

General Court upholds rejection of STREAMS trademark application

General Court: consumers perceive signs as a whole

CJEU considers trademarks with common element 'so' and finds likelihood of confusion

Twitter

25 Mar 2019

@WTRmagazine RT @WebTMS: Presidential #election campaigning is under way as candidates kick off their runs for the #WhiteHouse, but how many are protec… Read more

25 Mar 2019

@WTRmagazine RT @FarsightSecInc: From K-pop to Presley: inside the trademark portfolios of the music industry’s biggest names <-"The “King of Rock and R… Read more

25 Mar 2019

@WTRmagazine RT @TheTMNinja: How Mastercard is adapting to the digital era and going sonic – exclusive interview - World Trademark Review https://t.co… Read more

25 Mar 2019

@WTRmagazine RT @Brand_Babe: Louis Vuitton victory, Apple Pencil confusion, and brand loyalty declining: news digest - World Trademark Review https://t.… Read more