• WIPO releases Guide to Trade Secrets and Innovation

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2024/07/wipo-releases-guide-to-trade-secrets.html It might be argued that the most frequently discussed topics in the field of intellectual property are copyright, design law, patents and trade marks. However, other branches of IP are deserving of close attention, one such area being trade secrets. The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) has just launched... Continue reading

     
  • Revving halt: EUIPO upholds refusal to register Porsche’s accelerating engine sound mark

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2024/07/revving-halt-euipo-upholds-refusal-to.html   By decision of 20 June 2024 (R 1900/2023, original German version here and English machine translation here), the Board of Appeal (BoA) of EUIPO confirmed the initial refusal (see The IPKat here) to register a sound mark consisting of an accelerating engine noise. The BOA confirmed the lack... Continue reading

     
  • [Book Review] The EU Geo-blocking Regulation: A Commentary

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2024/07/book-review-eu-geo-blocking-regulation.html This is a review of “The EU Geo-Blocking Regulation: A Commentary” by Marketa Trimble (William S. Boyd School of Law). According to the author, this commentary of the Geo-blocking Regulation is intended to aid lawyers, academics, judges, legislators, and technical experts alike in interpreting and applying the Regulation.  From... Continue reading

     
  • When is the inventor of an AI model also an inventor of the model’s output? A closer look at the USPTO Guidance for AI-Assisted Inventions

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2024/07/when-is-inventor-of-ai-model-also.html According to the USPTO guidance for AI-assisted inventions, AI has the potential to solve some of society’s most difficult challenges. However, in the patent realm, the USPTO also believes that “inventorship analysis should focus on human contributions, as patents function to incentivize and reward human ingenuity”. How then are AI-generated... Continue reading

     
  • [Guest post] Retromark Volume XIV: the last six months in trade marks

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2024/07/guest-post-retromark-volume-xiv-last.html If you are interested in trade mark law developments, you cannot miss the classic Retromark update. Darren Meale of Simmons & Simmons presents the fourteenth volume in his rundown of notable trade mark cases over the past six months. Heres’s what Darren writes: Retromark Volume XIV: the last six... Continue reading

     
  • Venice Court on “Balsamic Vinegar” and unfair competition

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2024/07/venice-court-on-balsamic-vinegar-and.html   By decision of 19 December 2023 (not appealed), the court of first instance of Venice ruled in favour of the Consorzio Tutela Aceto Balsamico di Modena (Consortium for the Protection of Balsamic Vinegar of Modena, “the Consortium”) against two Italian companies for acts of unfair competition due to the breach... Continue reading

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

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2024/07/never-too-late-if-you-missed-ipkat-last_29.html If you were too busy enjoying the opening ceremony and first days of the 2024 Olympic Games, then join this Kat in reading the summary of what you missed on The IPKat! Trade Marks Gif by Riana Harvey Marcel Pemsel reported on the recent decision of the Higher Regional... Continue reading

     
  • Sunday Surprises

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2024/07/sunday-surprises.html With the summer season heating up, the IPKat brings news of the latest IP events and opportunities! Chief of the Digital Trade and Frontier Technologies Unit at WTO. Let the summer begin! The World Trade Organization seeks to recruit the Chief of the newly created Digital Trade and Frontier... Continue reading

     
  • The simple math of adidas v Nike: Two stripes are not three stripes

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2024/07/the-simple-math-of-adidas-v-nike-two.html There is no doubt that the threes stripes of adidas are a famous trade mark. The simplicity of the sign brings challenges and raises the questions of its scope of protection. The Higher Regional Court of Düsseldorf had to decide whether five different trousers from Nike with different stripe... Continue reading

     
  • Happy 30th birthday, EU Plant Variety Rights Regulation!

    http://ipkitten.blogspot.com/2024/07/happy-30th-birthday-eu-plant-variety.html The EU Regulation on Community plant variety rights is celebrating its 30th birthday today! This is a significant milestone for the Council Regulation (EC) No 2100/94 of 27 July 1994, also known as the “Basic Regulation,” which established the unitary intellectual property right for plant varieties. An important birthday A Kat... Continue reading