Commercial success for pharmaceutical companies is highly dependent on the acquisition and enforcement of IP rights. While speed to filing is important in most instances, registering a trademark too early could have a negative impact on validity, as Casper Hemelrijk explains.
It looks as if the year is going from bad to worse for McDonald’s trademark portfolio. After the fast food chain’s EU registration for ‘BIG MAC’ was cancelled in January, the EUIPO has now partially revoked its EU word mark for ‘MC’. Casper Hemelrijk outlines the ruling.
The Court of Justice of the EU dealt the final blow to Red Bull’s trademark registration yesterday (29 July), after it agreed with the EU General Court’s 2017 decision that the colour combinations were not sufficiently ‘clear and precise’, and therefore not able to function as trademarks.
A well-maintained IP portfolio and, just as importantly, a well-maintained record of the IP portfolio can add significant value to a company, as well as making it an attractive proposition.
Meet with our experts at this year's MARQUES Annual Conference in Dublin, Ireland on 17-20 September 2019.
Such has been the success of the comedy movie Fack ju Göthe, its production company sought to register the title as a word mark. Casper Hemelrijk examines the public policy and morality objections within both the European and Benelux trademark contexts.
Regulation (EU) 2019/933 on Supplementary Protection Certificates (SPCs) entered into force on 1 July 2019. It amended Regulation (EC) No 469/2009 on SPCs by introducing a manufacturing waiver for generics and biosimilars within the EU.
The Madrid System for the international registration of marks offers brand owners the opportunity to apply and maintain protection for trademarks in 105 countries via one single procedure, in one language and one set of fees.
A robust anti-counterfeiting strategy is crucial for all brands as the trade in fakes continues to grow.
Last week, adidas suffered a third loss in its attempt to safeguard its three stripes trademark when the EU General Court dismissed the sportswear manufacturer’s appeal and confirmed EUIPO’s earlier decision of trademark invalidity.
One of the most popular panel discussions at this year’s INTA conference examined possible methods of IP protection for fictional characters. Panelist Chantal Koller sets out the European perspective.
The criteria for a mark to be ‘well known’ is higher than the assessment criteria for trademarks with reputation, and decisions can vary considerably between EU member states, as Casper Hemelrijk explains.