Prosecution

Abstract: Djibouti becomes the 150th PCT Member-state

Djibouti has become the 150th Member State to join the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT), it filed its instrument of accession on the 23rd of June, 2016 and the treaty is expected to be enforceable from the 23rd of September, 2016. The law in Djibouti is due to be amended in order to cater for PCT international applications.

Abstract: The UK has voted to leave the EU – what are the consequences for IP Rights?

The surprise came on the morning of Friday, the 24th of June: Voters in the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union. Apart from all of the other economic and political issues, this event has created a chorus of concerns among IP stakeholders.

Abstract: BUDWEISER will use the trademark AMERICA but will not place an application for registration

With the US Presidential elections and the 4th of July celebrations stealing the spotlight, Budweiser, in a purely marketing campaign and trying to make the most out of the situation, has changed the name of its beer products from the standard Budweiser, into “AMERICA”.

Past April 20th, 2016 the Rwandan government has released an Official Gazette Special.

This important document, drafted in Kinyarwanda, French and English, makes effective recently promulgated laws and modifies various IP laws. The main changes are the following:

Since the 8th of June, 2016, the Industrial Property Office of Kosovo, one of the youngest countries in the world, has tighten its requirements for filing applications for protection of trademarks, designs, patents and other intellectual property rights.

A Chinese court has ruled against Apple in a case over the use of the ‘iPhone’ trademark claiming that the Californian company failed to prove the term was “familiar to the public and widely known” at the time of registration. The trademark ‘iPhone’ was registered by the Chinese company Xintong Tiandi Technology Co. in 2007 on the same year the iPhone was launched, although it was not available in China until 2009. The company is a leather manufacturer that commercialises leather goods such as phone cases, purses, handbags and wallets.

The concept of keeping things as ‘simple and concise’ as possible in business and commercial affairs is frequently endorsed by marketing strategists as being the sure proof path to gaining visibility and the attention of the public. However, said strategy also carries an amount of risk when it comes to obtaining a trademark registration.

The Kuwaiti Council of Ministers approved Law No. 11/2016 declaring accession to the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT). The newly approved law was published in the Kuwaiti Official Gazette on the 27th of March, 2016. Adhering to the PCT enables Kuwait to register international patents through its national office, and as a consequence, improves legal protection for national and regional inventions as well as facilitate administrative procedures for obtaining protection.

Following several months of political and social unrest, the Republic of Burundi appears to be returning to normality and regaining its commercial and financial interests. A gesture that demonstrates Burundi’s firm commitment is the nation’s recent adherence to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works and to the WIPO Copyright Treaty.

The World Intellectual Property Organisation informed that Burundi had deposited the instruments of accession with the organisation on the 12th of January of 2016.

A new Industrial Property Code is now in force in Mozambique – from 31 March 2016. This new Code (henceforth the new IPC) was approved on 31 December 2015 by the Council of Ministers of Mozambique and was published under Decree no. 47/2015. As laid down in Article 2 of the referred Decree, the Mozambican Industrial Property Code of 2006 (from now on 2006 IPC) is expressly repealed and replaced. Further, Decree no. 21/2009, establishing the regime of Appellations of Origin and Geographical Indications, is also repealed and this matter is now provided for in the new IPC.