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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.

Kanchan Vadehra and Sharad Vadehra of Kan and Krishme discuss some of the unique features of the Indian patent system and tips to overcome those challenges

The Beijing IP Court published a notice on its website in October 2015 entitled Collection and Publication of Opinions Regarding Law Application on Issues Related to Article 19.4 of the Trademark Law. This notice looks like irrelevant to the patent world, but actually the implication goes well beyond trade marks. Arguably, this court notice started something similar to the amicus brief system for Chinese IP cases. The issue in this case is related to whether or not Chinese trade mark agent firms are entitled to register trade marks under their own names except for their own trade names.

On October 15, the national authority in China responsible for administrative enforcement of trade marks, the State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC), issued a notice announcing an unusual year-long campaign to provide special trade mark protection to the Walt Disney Company.

It is not rare that a company be faced with trading partner's bankruptcy. While many companies that have a monetary claim against the trading partner would perform credit management in preparation for the partner's bankruptcy, only a few companies which have a claim not intended for monetary payment would take such a step. However, where a company has been provided with technology by a trading partner, it is likely that that company incurs greater loss than a company only having a monetary claim when the trading partner went bankrupt. For example, such a company will be unable to be provided technology from the trading partner or may be obligated to pay a large penalty to a third party as the following case shows.

The bouncer who released footage from a Queenstown, New Zealand bar featuring English rugby player Mike Tindall has had his conviction under the Crimes Act upheld by the Supreme Court. The Court's decision is based on its finding that the digital file Jonathan Dixon removed from the bar constitutes property under the Crimes Act.

China has implemented TRIPs standards for compulsory licensing in its IP laws. Matthew A Murphy explains how this affects patents, copyright and plant varieties