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It will soon become easier for foreign companies to obtain domain names in Brazil. The Brazilian Internet Administration Committee is about to change its policy which requires a local presence to register a domain name in the country.

AUSTRALIA: The Australian government is due to announce that the country will accede to the Madrid Protocol in March 2001. The Protocol will then be implemented in June or July 2001. Submissions were tabled in Parliament in October 2000, and a decision is due before the end of February. Once the Protocol is implemented, both international and domestic applications will have a first report published within 18 months. The Trade Mark Office is now recruiting more examiners to improve its service. COSTA RICA: The Legislative Assembly has adopted eight laws relating to intellectual property, including laws on enforcement of IP rights, trade marks, copyright, layout designs and integrated circuits and approval of the two WIPO Copyright treaties of December 1999, as well as the PCT. COLOMBIA: The Patent Cooperation Treaty came into effect in Colombia on February 28. Consequently, any PCT applications filed after that date can include Colombia (code CO) as a designation. KOREA: The Trade Mark Law has been amended and will come into effect on July 1 2001. The law includes amendments to join the Madrid Protocol. Korea is likely to ratify the Protocol by the early 2002. SPAIN: A new law on Civil Procedure came into force on January 8 2001. It aims to make cases more efficient and rapid, and covers intellectual property and unfair competition actions, but does not supersede the Patent Law. The new law governs matters such as evidence, witnesses, documentation and litigation procedure. TAIWAN: The Legislative Yuan is considering amendments to the Trade Mark Law in preparation for joining the World Trade Organization. The new law will be compatible with the Law of Administrative Proceedings; substantive examination of trade marks will be abolished; and border control measures will be introduced. The amendments should be enacted before the end of this year.

The US is ready to take punitive action against Ukraine, if the eastern European country does not clamp down on copyright pirates immediately.

First you lose $20 million. Then you get it back. Then you lose it again. That is the scenario facing an Indianapolis company, Biomet, which makes orthopedic products.

How do you retain control over the design and rights in your website when contracting out the development? Susan Kim outlines the most important business and legal issues to consider when negotiating web site agreements

Todd Dickinson´ s two-year stint as head of the US Patent and Trademark Office ended on Saturday 20 January, following George W Bush´ s inauguration. He was immediately hailed as one of the most successful Commissioners in recent times. Dickinson oversaw a 70% increase in patent applications; a 200% rise in the number of trade mark applications; a complete restructuring of the agency´ s management team; and an increased number of patent and trade mark examiners. It was a busy two years. "He did a marvellous job," says Michael Heltzer, government relations manager of the International Trade Mark Association (INTA). "He totally understood the role of the PTO in safeguarding America´ s ideas, something which his predecessors did not." Michael Kirk, executive director of the American Intellectual Property Law Association (AIPLA) agrees: "Dickinson dedicated a lot more effort to the actual running of the office than his predecessor Bruce Lehman, putting more emphasis on processing applications and the quality of patent examinations, which are critical to the office."

The patent alternative

The Andean Pact member states have long been viewed as a backwater in the technology field. But, reports James Nurton, the new Decision 486 should radically improve patent protection and transform that image

January 1 2000, as for many developing countries, was an important date in India’s diary. It marked the end of the country’s five-year transition period and the moment it became subject to the TRIPs agreement. Tabitha Parker spoke to two senior industry figures about the change

The decision of the Court of Appeal in Douglas & Others v Hello Ltd has been heralded as having recognized a right of privacy in English law. Stephen Bate and Lawrence Abramson analyze the decision and its implications