The IPKat BLOG – Page 114

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EBA hints at accepting “lack of implausibility” standard for inventive step (G2/21)

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2022/10/eba-hints-at-accepting-lack-of.html The Enlarged Board of Appeal (EBA) has issued its preliminary opinion in G2/21 on plausibility. The final decision in this referral has the potential to either lower or increase the plausibility requirement in EPO inventive step analysis. The non-binding preliminary opinion offers a glimpse into what the EBA is... Continue reading
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How a changed attitude towards secrecy and the contents of letters helped create the “Republic of Letters” and bring on the modern world

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2022/10/how-changed-attitude-towards-secrecy.html There are few types of literary work for which copyright law has been less relevant than the letter (as in correspondence). How many Kat readers have given legal advice or engaged in a copyright infringement case involving the contents of a letter? [For Kat readers under the age of... Continue reading
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AG Szpunar advises CJEU to rule that streaming platforms are not liable (unless they have intentionally applied ineffective geo-blocks) if their users use VPNs

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2022/10/ag-szpunar-advises-cjeu-to-rule-that.html Access attempt … Is the operator of a streaming platform liable for copyright infringement if users of its service use a VPN to access content that in principle would not be accessible from a certain territory, given geo-blocking restrictions implemented by the platform operator? This is the key issue... Continue reading
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Never too Late: If you missed the IPKat the past weeks!

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2022/10/never-too-late-if-you-missed-ipkat-past.html It has been a busy few weeks for the IPKat and it’s about time to take a look at what we have covered during this time:- Patents The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) reported that the European Patent Office (EPO) Administrative Council decided to abolish the 10-day rule,... Continue reading
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Can Vuitton’s Damier Azur pattern be a trade mark? General Court rejects claim of acquired distinctiveness through use

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2022/10/can-vuittons-damier-azur-pattern-be.html Vuitton’s Damier Azur Is Louis Vuitton’s Damier Azur pattern distinctive enough to be a trade mark? If this seems like a déjà vu, it is because it is: indeed, back in 2020 the EU General Court (GC) already considered this question (T-105/19, covered on The IPKat here). At that... Continue reading
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Entry into Force of the 12th Edition of the Nice Classification on 1 January 2023

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2022/10/entry-into-force-of-12th-edition-of.html Trade mark practitioners should be aware that the 12th edition of the International Classification of Goods and Services for the Purposes of the Registration of Marks (“Nice Classification”) will enter into force on 1 January 2023. The 12th edition can be assessed here. In its recent Information Notice... Continue reading
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C-256/21 – CJEU’s interpretation of counterclaims and EU trade mark courts’ jurisdiction

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2022/10/c-25621-cjeus-interpretation-of.html By its decision C-256/21 of 13 October 2022, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) answered a referred question regarding the jurisdiction of EU trade mark courts: under Regulation 2017/1001 (EUTMR), does an EU trade mark court have jurisdiction over the invalidity of an EU trade mark... Continue reading
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Katcall Reminder

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2022/10/katcall-reminder.html The deadline for submissions to the openings for GuestKats and InternKats positions (as announced here) is approaching. Those interested must submit their complete applications no later than Friday, 21 October 2022 (midnight, GMT). Complete applications must contain CV details, interest in IPKat, and a 400-word writing sample (or a link to... Continue reading
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General Court considers whether light blue colour mark is sufficiently distinctive to be registered as an EU trade mark

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2022/10/general-court-considers-whether-light.html Adding to the increasingly abundant case law on unconventional EU trade marks (EUTMs), in a recent decision (Case T-168/21, only available in French and German) rendered earlier this month, the General Court had to consider whether the colour mark below (described as light blue: RAL 5012) could be sufficiently... Continue reading
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Laguiole knife, at the origin of the French GI system for craft and industrial products, is now registered as a GI

http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2022/10/laguiole-knife-at-origin-of-french-gi.html The French Patent and Trade Mark Office (INPI) recently registered “Couteau Laguiole” as a geographical indication (GI) for a knife produced in the French communes of Laguiole and Thiers. It is a French-only GI, as no EU-wide GI protection is currently foreseen for craft and industrial products (also known... Continue reading