Prosecution

The Mozambique Industrial Property Code (IPC), which has been in force since 2016, provides six main IP rights that any entity may use to protect their distinctive signs in commerce.

The aim of this article is to analyze to what extent these six different rights are necessary and the effects they may produce on Mozambique’s IP system.

Article 1 of the IPC provides definitions of distinctive signs, including:

Over the past four years, Angola has been trying to get out of the deep crisis that has plagued the country. With the fall in oil prices, the economy has shaken and the stability of companies has never been the same. The Angolan economy was supported substantially by Petroleum. This is evident when we look at the 3600 patent applications in Angola, which mostly belong to the petroleum sector.

While the current European Copyright Law, dating back to 2001, has shown to be inappropriate in responding to the particularities of the digital market and the demands of the Author’s Rights, the European Commission has proposed, in September 2016, to adapt Copyright Law to the digital age.

Two years later, this highly and unquestionably needed reform, was not yet approved and, as concerned European citizens or simple interested persons, we may question ourselves about the reasons of this delay.

Malawi has just formalized its adherence to the Madrid Protocol by depositing the country’s instrument of accession on the 25th September.

The 97th PTMG’s Autumn Conference took place in Dubrovnik, Croatia. The event focused on Trademark Protection in the Pharma Industry.

The international use of Nonproprietary Names (INN) was one of the issues that stood out at this event. The presentation of case studies was highlighted by the participants as a plus of this edition, that counted with our attendance.

The new Industrial Property Regulations were finally published in the Namibian Government Gazette on the 1st day of June, 2018 and the law came into effect two months after, on the 1st of August.

The Act means to repeal the Trade Marks in South West Africa Act, dated 1973, introducing new provisions for trademarks, patents and industrial designs.

The new legal frame has been long anticipated and concerns several changes in what relates Industrial Property.

The gaming industry has grown exponentially over the last few years, having largely overcome the revenue generated by the cinema industry of Hollywood. The transition from a niche entertainment to a very lucrative business further dictates an increase of the risk and the proportional cautions that must be taken. In this sense, considering every factor that encompasses the gaming industry, the importance of all Intellectual Property rights should not be overstated and must be perceived as a priority when a new project is initiated.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has already opened the door to our reality and we have not even realized it. Think again who believes that a world endowed with technological autonomy without constant human aid is a utopia or a subject of bygone centuries. Far from it; we face and live in a century where the great questions of our society need further guidance.

The Moroccan Trademark Office (OMPIC) will now proceed to issue trademark registration certificates electronically, in a digital PDF format that will bear the official stamp of OMPIC. The certificate has the same legal value as the hard copy. This will be an important step as to modernize and simplify the procedure for trademark registration.

Is the CrossFit trademark "too big"?

This new dynamic that revolutionized indoor physical training, created in 2000 by Greg Glassman, consists in a physical training methodology focused on the development of general physical skills, from a dynamic and functional training. Through this new method, practitioners through WOD'S (work of the day) constantly challenge their physical and mental endurance.