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With no central patent court in sight, Europe’s litigation system will continue to be a confusing, expensive and challenging maze of possibilities. Big multinationals have to deal with it and have developed specific strategies to enforce their patents. Stéphanie Bodoni examines their tactics

Jim Mendenhall, Assistant US Trade Representative for Services, Investment and Intellectual Property

Despite owning some of the world's most famous comic-strip characters, Marvel went bankrupt in 1996. But an aggressive licensing strategy has returned the company to financial health. Sam Mamudi investigates

As more and more foreign companies seek to boost profits by outsourcing service sector jobs to low-cost jurisdictions, IP professionals are becoming increasingly aware of the need to safeguard their companies' intellectual property in the process. Pravin Anand and Ameet Datta explain how outsourcing customers can avoid some of the potential pitfalls in India

Argentina's reforms have been met with approval by the patent community. Martín Bensadon and Ignacio Sánchez Echagüe explain what the changes mean to patent holders

As well as offering opportunities, off-shoring can expose businesses to a number of risks. Michael Chissick and Belinda Doshi look at how those risks can best be managed and examine the oft-neglected IP aspects of off-shoring

MIP's annual survey of the largest IP practices in the US, Europe and Asia reveals that some firms have grown significantly over the past year, while others have suffered a notable drop in staff numbers

A recent ECJ ruling confirms the registrability of combinations of colours as trade marks. David Stone and Nicholas Bolter review the decision, and provide some practical help in overcoming the difficulties now facing trade mark owners

James Nurton, London

EU: The European Commission issued a call for tenders to conduct a study that will provide a picture of the effects of patents on the economy and strategies to develop and implement suitable patent policies. EU: Agriculture commissioner Franz Fischler announced the addition of seven names to the list of protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications in the EU. The names are French Valençay cheese, Scottish Farmed Salmon, Ternera de Extremedura (veal from Spain), and four names for a Spanish cooking oil: Aceite de Mallorca, Aceite mallorquín, Oli de Mallorca and Oli mallorquí. France: Record labels and internet service providers, including Free, Noos, Tiscali France and Wanadoo, signed a government-backed charter to crack down on illegal music downloading sites by attracting more consumers to a wider range of legally available songs on the internet. UK: The UK government launched a national IP strategy aimed at curbing piracy in the country. It will involve the Patent Office, police, trading standards, Customs and brand owners. UK: A trade mark dispute over the colour orange erupted between easygroup and mobile phone company Orange after easygroup announced the planned December launch of a new mobile phone service, easyMobile, which will use the company's orange logo colour. A settlement is expected. UK: Enforcement officers arrested 57 people in a nationwide piracy crackdown, seizing fake goods worth more than £500 million. UK: In a government-backed report released on July 29, the Patent Office called for the creation of an insurance scheme that would support smaller companies wishing to sue patent infringers. UK: An English court dismissed Nestlé's attempts to register the shape of its Polo mint as a trade mark. The case, brought by Mars UK, concerned the legitimacy of Nestlé's attempts to make changes to its trade mark application during the registration process.