Search results for

On December 3 2007, the Bureau of Legal Affairs (BLA), the adjudication bureau of the Intellectual Property Office (IPPhil) presented to a public hearing proposed amendments to the rules and regulations on administrative complaints for violation of intellectual property laws. The objective of the amendments is to speed up the prosecution by the BLA of IP violation cases, for example, infringement, unfair competition, false designation of origin, false or fraudulent declaration.

The Community trade mark will soon mark its 12th anniversary. Since it was launched, the EU has seen many changes - and some of them pose challenges for the CTM system. James Nurton reports

Amanresorts Limited and Amanresorts International Pte Ltd (Amanresorts) are two companies under the umbrella of the Amanresorts Group. Amanresorts are the owners of various trade marks comprising the word "Aman" and/or the prefix "Aman" including "Amanusa" around the world (but their "Amanusa" mark in Singapore was not renewed at the relevant time). Amanresorts operate many exclusive and luxurious hotels and resorts around the world and "Amanusa" is one of Amanresorts' exclusive high-end resorts in Bali.

On January 2 2008, a Decree was published in the Official Gazette in Mexico modifying several provisions of the Regulations for Health Consumables of the Health Law, concerning important issues for the pharmaceutical industry.

In June 2000 Dutch company Stichting Lodestar applied to register the trade mark Wild Geese in respect of beers and other alcoholic beverages. Austin Nichols, proprietor of the registered trade mark Wild Turkey in respect of the same goods, opposed registration. The assistant commissioner held that there was no reasonable likelihood of deception or confusion between the two marks.

Act 221/2006 Coll on the enforcement of industrial property rights transposed Directive 2004/48/EC of the European Parliament and Council on the enforcement of IP rights. This unified the scope of the rights possessed by owners with respect to the individual types of intellectual property when they are infringed, as well as potential remedies. The sanctions for any IP infringement (regarding trade marks, patents, topographies of semiconductor products, utility models, industrial designs, appellations of origin and geographic designations) and the type of remedy are no longer incorporated in the statutes regulating their creation, extent, duration and expiry, but are to be found in one single Act.

Anand and Anand, New Delhi

Franck Soutoul and Jean-Philippe Bresson of Inlex analyze differences between EU and French trade mark practice, and discuss the particular problems that Google poses

null

The Hangzhou Intermediate People's Court recently ordered Generation 2000, a well-known Hong Kong fashion chain with over 400 franchised counters/outlets in China, as well as some of its franchisees in China, to pay Rmb20 million (around $2.8 million) to Zhao Hua for infringing his 2000 trade mark.