Around the IP Blogs

The IP blogs have been active over the past week bursting with a wide range of different topics. The IPKat has once again compiled some of them for you.

It’s time to take a look at last year’s statistics. In 2021, there was a 14.4% increase in international registration filings compared to 2020! These and other relevant figures were recently published by WIPO and Marques’ CLASS 46 reported on them here.

MD Patent referred to case T-589/20 on the likelihood of confusion between the signs “MAIMAI MADE IN ITALY” and “YAMAMAY”, recently decided by the General Court. Background and outcome of the decision here.

On Saturday, February 5, 2022, WIPO announced China’s accession to the Hague System, making it the 68th contracting party to the 1999 Act and the 77th member of the Hague Union. According to WIPO, China’s accession means that the Hague System will cover nine of the world’s top 10 economic markets. Marques’ CLASS 99 reported more insights here.

In the U.S., the first-sale doctrine allows libraries to lend physical copies without the author’s permission because the initial authorized sale of a copy exhausts the copyright owner’s distribution right for that particular copy. But what happens when it comes to e-books and audiobooks, where copyright owners typically license access to the works rather than selling copies? IPWatchdog provides further food for thought here.

Recently, as part of the amendment to the Copyright Act, the Austrian government intended to introduce a provision subjecting the new publisher’s right to mandatory collective management. Can the author be prevented from exercising his exclusive rights individually? More questions and answers on this interesting topic have been discussed in detail by the Kluwer Copyright Blog here.

In patent disputes, must the patentee choose between a preliminary injunction or a main action in Denmark? In a recent decision, the appellate court upheld a ruling whereby the patentee had forfeited the opportunity to obtain a PI because it chose to file a main action first. Kluwer Patent Blog has commented on the background and outcome of the case here.

A University of Arkansas professor has pleaded guilty to misrepresenting the existence of patents in China to the FBI, as noted by IP Finance here.