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The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) recently began two collaborative search pilot programmes, one with the Japanese Patent Office (JPO) and a second with the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO). Both pilot programmes aim to increase patent quality by giving applicants a second prior art search to consider before an initial determination of patentability is made, while also promoting work sharing between patent offices.

Among the many challenges in enforcing IP rights in developing countries such as Vietnam, those that arise from violations occurring on the internet may be the most difficult to handle. However, an American entertainment production company's recent success in dealing with online copyright violations shows that progress can be made with the right strategy.

IP stakeholders from around the world agreed four Resolutions on patents, trade marks, copyright and trade secrets at the AIPPI World IP Congress in October. Sarah Matheson discusses each of them

The Australian courts have again rejected the notion that what the applicant says during prosecution can be held against the patentee during later litigation.

A new Act coming into force in 2017 introduces some important changes affecting patents and utility models in Spain. Santiago Jordá explains

As we have previously reported, one of the EPO's chemical boards of appeal has referred the issue of entitlement to partial priority to the Enlarged Board of Appeal. The case is pending before the Enlarged Board under reference G 1/15.

Contrary to the very strict approach at the EPO in the situation in opposition proceedings referred to as the inescapable trap (where the patentee is squeezed between Article 123(2) and Article 123(3) EPC), which almost exclusively leads to the revocation of a European patent, Germany's Federal Supreme Court (BGH) has established a more liberal practice of dealing with such a situation for national German patents (see in particular the BGH's decision Xa ZB 14/09 Winkelmesseinrichtung).

The multi-member Civil Court of Athens recently issued an interesting judgment regarding the criteria when comparing composite trade marks covering pharmaceutical products and consisting of words and coloured devices. The dispute in question referred to a main lawsuit filed against a Greek company regarding infringement of the famous trademark Aspiring. The plaintiff claimed that the colour combination of green and white with black lettering is widely recognisable by consumers as an essential element of its Aspiring product marking and that this combination is associated with the plaintiff. The infringing product was a pharmaceutical product for the relief of pain, antipyretics and analgesic which circulated in the market in a packaging bearing the colours green and white with black lettering and under a different word mark.

When it comes to protecting new technologies, it may be difficult to decide between trade secret and patent protection.

In Dutch court practice, an appeal is of a devolutive nature, that is in appeal the case is reconsidered as a whole. However, in a recent interlocutory decision (November 3 2015, High Point v KPN), the Appeal Court in The Hague found that the patentee was not entitled to further limit his claims.