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A recent US court decision allowing third parties to claim fair use of descriptive trade marks could deter businesses from adopting descriptive marks in the future. But Thomas Zellerbach and Diana Rutowski of Orrick, Herrington and Sutcliffe explain why no one should be dissuaded from continuing to use such marks as powerful marketing tools

On July 1 2004, Singapore's trade mark legislation was amended to introduce better protection for well-known trade marks. One novelty is the introduction of trade mark dilution. Kevin Wong and Nathan Lau of ECSF explain why this is good news for brand owners

A new law is being introduced in Mexico aimed at clarifying the rules for well-known trade marks. Guillermo Ballesteros of Olivares & Cia explains the status of well-known marks and the issues that remain unanswered in the new law

Getting the best protection against trade mark infringements is every brand owner's aim. But as Didi Irawadi Syamsuddin of Acemark explains in his outline of the Indonesian trade mark system, many owners ignore the basic protection measures

Malaysia's success as a global trading partner means that trade mark creation and protection are more important in the country than ever. Karen Abraham of Shearn Delamore & Co provides a run-down of the brand management process

The ECJ's case law on three-dimensional shape marks in recent years has had its effects on German jurisprudence. Aloys Hüttermann of Maiwald explains why applicants need to be extra careful when registering their shape marks in the future

Clearing a new trade mark in the expanded EU can be a tiresome and costly task for in-house trade mark counsel. Daan Teeuwissen and Ellen Gevers of Knijff have found one solution which they say will make brand owners' lives easier

On January 1 2005, Anne Gundelfinger, associate general counsel of Intel, took over as the new president of INTA. She spoke to Stéphanie Bodoni about her priorities for the next year, the challenges facing brand owners, and what changes are looming in the trade mark world

Shampoo, washing powder, chewing gum, mineral water, razors, shoe polish, vodka, tea bags... items on your regular shopping list? Perhaps, but in 2005 they are also high on another list: favourite output from today's counterfeiting industry. Marie Pattullo, of the European Brands Association AIM, reports

What is our brand and what makes it successful? That is the key question brand owners and company brand managers have to answer before embarking on any further tasks. The answer is not straightforward. A brand is more than just a trade mark or a logo or a slogan - it is a combination of all these and more, including colours, symbols, signs and shapes. A brand is all that makes a company and its products stand out in the eye of the consumer and what leads him or her to prefer one company's products over that of another.