Exclusive: Dolby sues Lava in India over audio coding SEPs
Dolby sued Indian smartphone maker Lava at the Delhi High Court for allegedly infringing its advanced audio coding standard-essential patents, Managing IP revealed on May 2.
The lawsuit came shortly after another patent innovator, Ericsson, secured record SEP damages of ₹244 crores ($29 million) in March against Lava.
To read the full article, click here
IP Case Law Conference: ‘Weak’ marks and Rihanna’s disclosure gaffe
On day one of the EUIPO’s Case Law Conference, which took place between April 29 and 30, delegates heard why single-letter trademarks are weak and received an update on the EU’s design law shakeup.
To read the full article, click here. A roundup of the second day of the conference is included here and in the links below.
IPR work draws former USPTO solicitor to Carmichael IP
A former USPTO solicitor was drawn to Carmichael IP for the opportunity to work on inter partes reviews at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board.
Carmichael IP announced on Friday, April 26, that it had hired Nancy Linck.
To read the full article click here.
Other articles published on Managing IP this week include:
Ex-USPTO advisor eager to provide insider view at Finnegan
Five minutes with… Anna Sosis, TD Bank Group
‘Flooded’ with requests: how in-house vet AI tools
IP Case Law Conference: Judicial cooperation and EU copyright challenges
Weekly take: Companies must look beyond non-competes to protect trade secrets
‘Technology keeps me going’: IPH exec on transforming IP businesses
InterDigital claims injunction victory over Lenovo in Germany
Elsewhere in IP
Jury’s out
Most in-house lawyers have yet to form an opinion for or against Ireland’s participation in the Unified Patent Court (UPC), a survey by law firm Mason Hayes & Curran published on Wednesday, May 1 has found.
The firm surveyed 240 lawyers from various sectors with 66% of respondents revealing that they had not yet decided how to vote in an upcoming referendum. Last month, the government delayed a planned referendum originally scheduled for June on whether the country should join the UPC.
National interest
The Financial Times newspaper also covered the UPC from an Irish perspective. In an article on Thursday, May 2, it described the UPC as “likely to make many voters’ eyes glaze over”. However, the newspaper spoke to local lawyers who explained the court's potential value to businesses.
Cases spiking
Sticking with the UPC, the court has revealed the latest data on the number of cases at the court since its inception on June 1. As of Thursday, May 2, the court has received 341 cases. Around 30 additional cases have been filed since the end of March, an increase of almost 10%. English is the most common language of proceedings with 48% of cases heard in that language.
Average Joe
The US District Court for the Central District of California ordered grocery chain Trader Joe's to pay more than $100,0000 in attorneys’ fees on Tuesday, April 30 after ruling that it had brought an “exceptionally weak” trademark case against its employee union.
The grocery chain sued Trader Joe’s United for selling allegedly infringing merchandise.
Judge Hernan Vera said Trader Joe’s claim that it was genuinely concerned about the dilution of its brand could not be taken seriously.
TikTok settles
TikTok will restore millions of songs to the platform after settling a royalties dispute with Universal Music Group (UMG), the companies announced in a joint statement on Wednesday, May 1. A row over how much TikTok was paying saw the two companies trade accusations with UMG temporarily boycotting the platform.
Mission statement
The UKIPO published its 2024 to 2027 strategy on Thursday, May 2, in which it pledged to provide an IP system that encourages investment in creativity and innovation. The office said it would boost investment in the UK’s most exciting technologies, champion responsible innovation, and support the UK’s cultural and creative industries to continue to be among the best in the world.
AI regulation
A cross-party group of UK politicians published a report on Wednesday, May 1, that called for fresh legislation to support the UK music industry and music fans by regulating artificial intelligence (AI). The report said music creators must be protected from “theft” of their work for AI-generated content to be clearly labelled.
That's it for today, see you again next week.
