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The Hong Kong Intellectual Property Department (HKIPD) made major reforms to the patent system in Hong Kong in December 2019, with the introduction of the original grant patent (OGP) system. The OGP system provides a direct filing route for an application for a standard patent (O) in Hong Kong and will be offered in parallel with the re-registration route. This reform is an important development that brings the Hong Kong patent system in line with other major patent offices. It is expected to better support innovation and technology development in Hong Kong.

The long-awaited Trademarks Act 2019 (2019 Act) finally came into force in December 2019. The enactment of the 2019 act effectively repeals its predecessor – the Trade Marks Act 1976 (1976 act). Among its various developments, a notable addition is the criminalisation of the act of counterfeiting trademarks. Part XV of the 2019 act deals with criminal offences, which were not dealt with under the 1976 act. Prior to the enactment of the Trademarks Act 2019, the criminal offences and enforcement provisions lay within the ambit of the Trade Descriptions Act 2011 (2011 act). The 2019 act has consolidated such provisions to comprehensively cover criminal offences, enforcement and penalties within the act.

In-house counsel from automotive, telecoms and tech companies are split on proposed changes that seek to close the injunction gap and give judges more discretion to grant automatic injunctions

Protection of geographical indications (GIs) has attracted increasing attention from the governments of various countries, and GIs have become one of the key issues that led to the creation of an important component of bilateral and multilateral international trade agreements. According to the 1994 Agreement On Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (the TRIPS Agreement), GIs are defined as "indications which identify a good as originating in the territory of a member, or a region or locality in that territory, where a given quality, reputation or other characteristic of the good is essentially attributable to its geographical origin."

On December 25 2019, the Supreme Court promulgated amendments of Several Provisions on Civil Evidence Rules (amendments). The amendments, which will come into effect on May 1 2020, have attracted lots of attention from IP practitioners. The rules are expected to improve the accuracy and standardisation of evidence production procedures and balance the burden of proof between litigants. Below are some highlights of the amendments.

Counsel at Brandit, a dating app and Hitachi discuss how data mining can aid IP enforcement, the pitfalls of storing too much data and filing strategies

Online marketplaces established by e-commerce portals claiming to be intermediaries have come under scrutiny from the Delhi High Court. The portals currently enjoy immunity under safe harbour provisions laid out in the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000. This was examined by a single judge of the Delhi High Court in a series of cases brought by Christian Louboutin SAS, Luxottica Group SPA, Skullcandy Inc and L'Oreal. The Court looked at the practices followed by e-commerce portals in selecting and enrolling sellers on their platform. Further, it examined if such practices made them an active participant or an intermediary. The brand owners in each of the cases listed below questioned the role played by the e-commerce operator in the sale of counterfeit goods on its platform.

Nirvana is suing Marc Jacobs for copyright and trade mark infringement for its use of a smiley face logo in its Bootleg Redux Grunge clothing collection, with observers saying the fashion brand will likely rely on First Amendment defences

Recent patent, trade mark and copyright news includes an Ed Sheeran case going to trial, Qualcomm posting bonds in its dispute with Apple in Germany, a Pooey Puitton purse, whether the Carlton dance is protected by copyright, and an Israel Supreme Court decision

The decrease in district court patent cases was proportionally smaller last year than the year before, suggesting the volume of new patent disputes is levelling out