Polsinelli plans ‘long-term’ partnership with OpSec
Polsinelli is eyeing a long-term partnership with online security company OpSec to help manage the firm’s new brand protection initiative, it told Managing IP this week.
The firm announced on March 14 that it had launched Solare, a brand protection programme that uses attorneys from various departments to help clients identify threats to their brands and decide what action to take.
Solare will combine OpSec’s services with Polsinelli’s own data on online enforcement actions to identify repeat bad actors and problematic geographical areas.
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Other articles published on Managing IP this week include:
‘Kid in a candy store’: how licensing agreements spark firms’ interest
Irish attorneys gear up for UPC referendum
Patent amendments have Indian firms poised for gold rush
Behind the case: UK judges provide food for thought in Lidl v Tesco
Weekly take: Lidl v Tesco should prompt High Court TM rethink
AI business: firms discuss case trackers and focus groups
Elsewhere in IP
EP growth
Companies and inventors filed 199,275 European patent applications at the EPO last year, an increase of 2.9% on the previous year and the highest number to date, according to the EPO’s Patent Index 2023 published on Tuesday, March 19. The leading technical fields for applications were digital communication (covering technologies related to mobile networks), medical technology, and computer technology.
Store war
The England and Wales Court of Appeal dismissed the bulk of Tesco’s appeal in its case against rival supermarket Lidl on Tuesday, March 19. In a judgment written by Lord Justice Richard Arnold, the court dismissed Tesco’s appeal against an earlier finding of trademark infringement and passing off. Lord Justices Colin Birss and Kim Lewison, the other two judges in the case, agreed but expressed a reluctance to do so.
Last year, the England and Wales High Court ruled that Tesco’s logo for its ‘Clubcard’ discount scheme had taken unfair advantage of Lidl’s reputation and damaged the distinctive character of the Lidl logo. Both logos feature a yellow circle on a blue square. Lidl’s has a thin red border around it.
Bird & Bird acted for Lidl while Tesco was represented by Haseltine Lake Kempner.
BPI v AI
The British Phonographic Industry (BPI), the trade association representing the UK music industry, has accused the artificial intelligence program Jammable of copyright infringement. It was reported this week that BPI had sent a notice to the company alleging that it unlawfully used copyright-protected works to develop technology capable of replicating artists’ voices.
Fake case reprieve
Donald Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen has escaped sanctions for giving his own attorney fake case citations that had been generated by artificial intelligence.
In a decision on Wednesday, March 20, Judge Jesse Furman at the District Court for the Southern District of New York also declined to sanction Cohen's counsel, David Schwartz, who had submitted the brief containing the bogus citations. The non-existent cases were cited in a filing that sought to end Cohen’s supervised release from prison.
Reddit owns up
In more AI news, Reddit said the US Federal Trade Commission is looking into the social media company’s plans to license its platform content to AI companies for training. Reddit announced the news in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday, March 15. The disclosure came ahead of the company’s expected initial public offering.
Sour Apple
The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit denied Apple’s petition for a writ of mandamus on Monday, March 18, in the company’s patent dispute with Carbyne Biometrics. Apple asked the Federal Circuit to compel Judge Alan Albright of the US District Court for the Western District of Texas to transfer its case to the Northern District of California.
IP lending
A WIPO report released in London on Tuesday, March 19, has noted that IP-backed loan products are emerging in the UK to help businesses scale and grow. The report, launched by WIPO’s director general Daren Tang and Viscount Camrose, the UK’s minister for AI and IP, found that UK banks are beginning to engage with IP-backed lending. The news follows recently launched schemes by NatWest and HSBC.
That's it for today, see you again next week.
