• Book review: The unrealized promise of the next great copyright act

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2020/04/book-review-unrealized-promise-of-next.html Having recently been reading a number of cases relating to US copyright and music, this Kat was very interested to review The Unrealized Promise of the Next Great Copyright Act U.S. Copyright Policy for the 21st Century, by Christopher S. Reed, Adjunct Faculty, Claremont Graduate University, US. The current US... Continue reading

     
  • Significant Revisions to the Swiss Copyright Act

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2020/04/significant-revisions-to-swiss.html The typical mischievous mood of April Fool’s Day is absent this year, indeed even Google has decided to skip sharing jokes today to pay respect to those who are fighting COVID-19. In this current difficult and in so many ways extraordinary situation, it may only be a sideshow that... Continue reading

     
  • Gleissner fails again in aptly-named UK trade mark invalidity action

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2020/03/gleissner-fails-again-in-aptly-named-uk.html To trade mark professionals, Michael Gleissner is a man who needs no introduction. The avid collector of registered trade marks (and unpaid costs orders) recently lost two registrations for PARASITE-related marks in a UK Intellectual Property Office invalidity action (decision here). This continues a trend of rightsholders successfully taking a... Continue reading

     
  • Never Too Late: if you missed the IPKat last week

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2020/03/never-too-late-if-you-missed-ipkat-last_31.html The IPKat was most productive this last week. Be sure to check our overview so as not to miss anything! A cat in iron catches no mice  Copyright Are tattoos protected by copyright? The US District Court for the Southern District of New York seems to answer in the... Continue reading

     
  • UK IP courts go virtual, as COVID-19 shutters courtrooms across the globe

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2020/03/uk-ip-courts-go-virtual-as-covid-19.html Merpel attacking her remote working capabilities with the concentration andpassion one would expect The legal profession is lucky.  Our jobs can be performed anywhere.  All we need is a laptop and a phone.  However, when it comes to litigation we still prefer our analogue world.  We like the tactile nature... Continue reading

     
  • What is all due care in stressful situations? (T 0600/18)

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2020/03/what-is-all-due-care-in-stressful.html Many patent attorneys will be working from home during this time.  A recent decision from the Board of Appeal (dating back to 2018), considers the criteria for all due care in stressful situations, in which were employees are sick or working from home.  Imagine for a moment that you are a patent... Continue reading

     
  • Never Too Late: If you missed the IPKat last week

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2020/03/never-too-late-if-you-missed-ipkat-last_28.html Although a lot of activities around the globe came to a halt, IP definitely did not! Make yourself a cup of tea and catch-up on last week’s IP news.  PATENTS The German constitutional court upholds complaint against UPC Agreement and implementing act!  Read the decision here. It is reported that... Continue reading

     
  • US court rules that unlicensed reproduction of NBA players’ tattoos in their videogame avatars is not a copyright infringement

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2020/03/us-court-rules-that-unlicensed.html Are tattoos protected by copyright? If so, can a person give a third party permission to use their likeness (which includes displaying the tattoos attached to their body) without the consent of the tattoo artist who realized said tattoos? These intriguing questions have been raised in a number of... Continue reading

     
  • China says ‘No’ to the malicious filing of Coronavirus-related trade marks

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2020/03/china-says-no-to-malicious-filing-of.html Article 10 of the Chinese Trade Mark Law (CTML), amended in 2019, lists several absolute grounds for refusal to trade mark registration. Among these, Article 10.1.8 prevents registration of signs which are ‘detrimental to socialist ethics or customs, or [have] other unwholesome influences’.  Recently, this provision has been used... Continue reading

     
  • When the court turned to an expert on whether there was cybersquatting

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2020/03/when-court-turned-to-expert-on-whether.html A time-revered pastime of IP commentators is discussing “things that they did not teach you in law school”. One of IPKat’s favourites is the role of expert witnesses. Well-known are instances of expert testimony in understanding the invention in a patent case, or valuation of a trademark portfolio. Kat... Continue reading