Niro Firm, Anchor Brewing: Intellectual Property
In an infringement case against HTC Corp. (2498), a federal judge in Chicago has ruled that lawyers from a firm that represents plaintiffs in patent disputes must pay attorney fees in the millions of dollars.
The case dates back to 2009 when lawyers from Chicago’s Niro Haller & Niro Ltd. filed a patent case against HTC, alleging the Taiwan-based maker of mobile phones infringed patents relating to picture phones.
Saiba mais em: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-16/niro-firm
What’s in a plant name? Trademark vs. patent
In the world of modern garden plants, it has become increasingly common for a simple species designation to be deemed insufficient. No longer does “sugar maple” or “common lilac” cut it. Most of our garden plants are represented in the trade by dozens, and in some cases thousands, of named selections (last time we checked, there were more than 40,000 named daylilies). These selections, or cultivars (cultivated variety in horticultural parlance), may differ from the typical species in any number of characteristics from flower size to disease resistance.
Saiba mais em: http://www.courier-journal.com/story/life/home-garden/2015/
Apple, Gilead, Hitler, ‘Elf-Man’: Intellectual Property
Apple Inc. (AAPL) and Ericsson AB are suing each other in the U.S. after failing to agree on the pricing of wireless-technology patents used by the maker of the iPhone and iPad.
Apple, saying Ericsson is seeking excessive royalty rates, yesterday asked a federal court in California to rule that Ericsson’s patents aren’t essential to long-term evolution, or LTE, standards. Stockholm-based Ericsson said today that it filed a complaint in a district court in Texas asking for a verdict on whether its fees are fair.
Saiba mais em: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-15/apple-lagunitas
Nice try Monaco, but you can’t trademark your own name…
MONACO IS KNOWN for its royalty, formula-one racing and as the playground of the world’s wealthy elite.
But that high-flying reputation comes at a cost with a European court today ruling the tiny principality was too famous to trademark its own name.
Saiba mais em: http://www.thejournal.ie/monaco-name-trademark
Trademarked or not, ‘Je suis Charlie’ commercialisation steps up
Yesterday we reported on a Benelux trademark application for ‘Je suis Charlie’, the phrase adopted across the globe following last week’s mass murders at the offices of French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo. We concluded that trademark offices bear a significant responsibility with applications that relate to tragic incidents. Today, as further applications have come to light, offices are now wrestling with this responsibility, in one instance taking a firm stance. Concurrently, commercialisation continues apace.
Saiba mais em: http://www.worldtrademarkreview.com/blog/Detail.aspx
Titles of single works now trademark eligible – maybe
In late 2014, the U.S. Trademark Office issued a decision contravening prior practice, ruling that the title ROCK YOUR BODY of a single book could function as a trademark.
For decades, the Trademark Office and the Federal Circuit held that the title of a single work merely described the work and was incapable of serving as a trademark. This served an absolute bar to registration of the title of a single work. However, once a second work bore the same title, so that a series existed, the title could serve as a trademark.
Saiba mais em: http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=843d0c33
Las solicitudes de patentes cayeron un 10,5% en 2014
Las solicitudes de registro de patentes en Canarias descendieron un 10,4% en 2014, según el análisis realizado por la firma PONS Patentes y Marcas Internacional con arreglo a los datos provisionales hechos públicos por la Oficina Española de Patentes y Marcas (OEPM).
Saiba mais em: http://eldia.es/canarias/2015-01-15/26-solicitudes
High Court Wants SG’s View On Oracle Software Copyrights
Law360, New York (January 12, 2015, 1:40 PM ET) — The U.S. Supreme Court asked the solicitor general on Monday to weigh in on the high-profile dispute between Google Inc. and Oracle Corp. over whether aspects of Oracle’s Java programming language can be protected by copyright.
Saiba mais em: http://www.law360.com/ip/articles/610310/high-court-asks
Pfizer, Alibaba, Rightscorp, Netlist: Intellectual Property
Pfizer Inc. (PFE), the maker of Lipitor and Viagra, sent a letter to physicians in the U.K. warning them that even through the patent on its anti-epilepsy drug pregabalin has expired, a patent on its use remains in effect.
Saiba mais em: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-14/pfizer
Spain’s new intellectual property legislation: the key points
Spain’s controversial new Intellectual Property Law, passed by the ruling Popular Party in the face of opposition by the rest of the parties in Congress, is now a reality.
The measures came into force at the start of the year and have already had an impact, notably the so-called Google tax. Here we present a rundown of the key changes.
Saiba mais em: http://elpais.com/elpais/2015/01/12/inenglish/1421069667
United States: Trademarks In Bankruptcy Sales: One Court Provides Guidance
Trademarks today are the poor cousins of other forms of intellectual property under the United States Bankruptcy Code (the “Code”). 11 U.S.C. §§ 101-1532. Trademarks are not included in the definition of “intellectual property” found in Code section 101(35A), and consequently are not explicitly treated in the same fashion as other forms of intellectual property under Code section 365(n), which provides that licensees of patents and other intellectual property may continue to use the licensed property after rejection of the license agreements.
Saiba mais em: http://www.mondaq.com/unitedstates/x/366366/Trademark/Trademarks+I
Apple, Ericsson in Legal Scrap Over Patents
Apple Inc. and the Swedish telecom equipment maker Ericsson are suing each other in the U.S. in a dispute over royalties for patents linked to high-speed wireless technology the iPhone maker uses in its mobile devices.
Saiba mais em: http://www.wsj.com/articles/apple-ericsson-in-lega
International franchising in the fashion industry – top five tips for growing overseas
There are many issues for fashion houses considering franchising as their route to international expansion – here are our top five tips
In the evolution of any fashion brand, growing the business through online and retail stores is a key strategic issue. Following initial launch and consolidation, it is inevitable that, in each fashion brand’s life cycle, it will consider international expansion. Then, how to grow will be as important as where to grow.
Saiba mais em: http://www.lexology.com/library/detail.aspx?g=3a2
IBM Leads, AFG, New Jersey County: Intellectual Property
IBM captured the top spot in annual U.S. patents granted for the 22nd straight year. The question remains: Can the perennial leader translate those inventions into revenue?
International Business Machines Corp. (IBM)’s 7,534 patents in 2014 beat the record it set a year earlier, the company said today in a statement. South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co. and Tokyo-based Canon Inc. ranked second and third.
Saiba mais em: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-13/ibm-leads
10 Things Everyone Gets Wrong About Intellectual Property Law
How well do you understand copyright and trademark law? When you travel about the Internet or make art, do you know what you are and aren’t allowed to do, or do you have intellectual property myths stuck in your brain. We take a few claims we’ve seen time and again, and compare them to the law.
Saiba mais em: http://io9.com/10-things-everyone-gets-wrong
“EAT MORE KALE” MARK ON THE ROAD TO REGISTRATION
Despite receiving a demand letter from fried chicken chain Chic-fil-A objecting to his EAT MORE KALE mark based upon its own EAT MORE CHICKEN mark, a Vermont t-shirt maker is one important step closer to achieving a federal registration for his brand.
Saiba mais em: http://incontestableblog.com/2015/01/06/eat-more-kale
Charlie Hebdo: Belgian seeking to trademark “Je Suis Charlie” says he wants to help victims
When Yanick Uytterhaegen applied to trademark the slogan “Je Suis Charlie” for commercial goods he became an instant hate figure.
But the Belgian businessman has told The Independent that he plans to licence the phrase, adopted by Charlie Hebdosympathisers worldwide, to raise funds for the families of the cartoonists massacred by terrorists last week.
Saiba mais em: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/charlie
Siemens registra 4.300 registros de patentes no ano fiscal de 2014
Siemens alcançou 4.300 registros de patentes no ano fiscal de 2014 – referente ao período de outubro de 2013 até setembro de 2014 – o que representa um aumento de 9% comparado ao ano anterior. Neste período, a companhia investiu aproximadamente € 4 bilhões em pesquisa e desenvolvimento e, para 2015, pretende aumentar o montante em € 400 milhões.
Saiba mais em: http://www.investimentosenoticias.com.br/noticias/n
IBM lidera registro de patentes nos EUA pelo 22º ano seguido
Pelo 22º ano consecutivo, a IBM é líder no número de patentes registradas nos Estados Unidos. Ao todo, foram 7.534 registros de patentes concedidos à companhia em 2014. Delas, 500 são provenientes de estudos em computação cognitiva, área do famoso computador Watson.
Das mais de sete mil patentes, 19 foram concedidas ao laboratório brasileiro de pesquisa da IBM. O material gerado no Brasil é registrado pela empresa no Escritório de Patentes e Marcas dos Estados Unidos (USPTO).
Saiba mais em: http://exame.abril.com.br/tecnologia/noticias/ibm-lidera
Google v Oracle: US Supreme Court turns to Obama in Java copyright war
The US Supreme Court hasn’t decided whether it will hear arguments in the long-running dispute between Google and Oracle over Java copyrights, and it has asked the Obama administration to weigh in before it makes up its mind.
Saiba mais em: http://www.theregister.co.uk/2015/01/12/supreme_court_seeks_o
Can You Copyright a Dream?
How the Martin Luther King estate controls the national hero’s image
Saiba mais em: http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/01
Franchising cresce 9,3% no 3T14, revela pesquisa da ABF
A indústria do franchising ampliou seu faturamento em 9,3% no 3º trimestre deste ano, comparado ao mesmo período do ano passado. Isto é o que indica a Pesquisa de Desempenho Trimestral do Franchising que acaba de ser divulgada pela Associação Brasileira de Franchising (ABF).
Saiba mais em: http://www.investimentosenoticias.com.br/fina
Redskins, DeLorean, BitTorrent: Intellectual Property
The U.S. Justice Department has intervened in the legal fight between the Washington Redskins professional football team and a federal trademark board that said the team’s name disparages American Indians and is no longer entitled to trademark protection.
The lengthy dispute dates back to 1992 when a group of American Indians first petitioned an appeal board of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to cancel the team’s marks, according to court documents.
Saiba mais em: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2015-01-1
Europe Releases its TTIP Proposals on Intellectual Property
Secrecy is trade negotiators’ stock-in-trade, and it has allowed them to sneak through rules on topics such as copyright and patents that would never pass muster under public scrutiny. EFF has not hesitated to call them out over this, whether the trade agreement in question is the Trans-Pacific Partnership, the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between Europe and the United States, or the Trade in Services Agreement (TISA).
Saiba mais em: https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2015/01/europe-rele
Justice Department intervenes in Redskins trademark protection lawsuit
The Native Americans fighting the Washington Redskins over the team’s trademark protections in a federal lawsuit got an important boost Friday when the Justice Department declared that it would intervene in a key aspect of the twisted legal case.
Saiba mais em: http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/justice
U.S. trademarks and the new U.S.-Cuba reality and its potential
Less than 15 years ago, in retaliation for a U.S. court decision against the Cuban government over the use of the trademark “HAVANA CLUB,” Fidel Castro threatened to make his own counterfeit Coca-Cola. Although Castro never carried out his threat, the incident highlights the turbulent history of trademark rights between the two countries. With President Barack Obama’s recent announcement of normalization of relations, we are on the cusp of the most pronounced commercial change in U.S. relations with Cuba in 50 years. Its effect on U.S. owners of trademarks will eventually have a significant impact on the future economy of Cuba and of South Florida.
Saiba mais em: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/business
Google Looks to High Court in Software Copyright Case
Months after the Supreme Court chiseled away at patent protections for software, Google Inc. and other companies now want the justice to set limits on how software makers can use copyrights to assert exclusive rights over programs.
Saiba mais em: http://blogs.wsj.com/law/2015/01/12/google-looks-to-