Trademarks & Domain Names

The courts in the US and EU have differed in their approach to the sensitive issue of potentially offensive or immoral trademarks.

It is now only 12 weeks until the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia, with the hosts taking on Saudi Arabia match on 14 June. Novagraaf’s Claire Jones examines the IP implications of this headline-grabbing event.

Patents, trademarks, designs and other forms of intellectual property (IP) play a key role in the success of all modern businesses.

The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) has encountered a setback in its attempt to bar non-Scottish distilleries from using the word ‘Glen’ in their product names.

AB InBev has announced plans to temporarily rebrand ‘JUPILER’ as ‘BELGIUM’ in support of the ‘Red Devils’, Belgium’s national football team, in the forthcoming 2018 World Cup. Novagraaf examines the trademark implications.

Danish dairy cooperative Arla has recovered the domain name castellocheese.co following a ruling by the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center.

In some cases, national registrations may be preferable to European trademark (EUTM) registrations explains Novagraaf’s Florence Chapin.

Approximately 5% of all the live contested trademark cases before the UK IPO relate to ‘Gleissner’ filings, according to a recent ruling over the mark ‘Alexander’. This latest decision is good news for affected brand owners.

Novagraaf's Anca Draganescu-Pinawin on the cat that grew and protected a business empire using IP rights. 

Finding a branded product for sale on an online platform is now commonplace, as we are in an era where e-commerce is skyrocketing. But what are the implications for brand owners?

How is a trademark, containing or composed solely of Asian characters, assessed in the EU?

Some of you may have noticed that Disney’s new heroine is called Vaiana in most parts of Europe and Moana almost everywhere else. Here, we explain the disparity.