December 2016/ January 2017
Intellectual Property Monthly Newsletter
Dear Clients,
Welcome to the first issue of IP Monthly in 2017. We have recapped the biggest brands of 2016, and highlighted key developments in the Intellectual Property space in December and January. We are delighted to include a ruling which was a major victory for Coulson Harney at the Industrial Property Tribunal. We take this opportunity to wish you a prosperous 2017.
Important dates in Interesting facts about • 10 December: Human Rights Day December and January December & January • 18 December: International • 1 December: World Aids Day Migrants Day • The name December comes from the Latin word for ten • 2 December: International Day • 20 December: International (decem), because it was the for the Abolition of Slavery Human Solidarity Day tenth month of the Roman calendar, which began in March. • 3 December: United Nations • 25 December: Christmas Day International Day of Persons • December starts on the same with Disabilities • 26 December: Boxing Day day of the week as September and ends on the same day of • 5 December: World Soil Day • 31 December: New Year’s Eve the week as April.
• 9 December: International • 1 January: New Year’s Day • January (in Latin, Ianuarius) is Day of Commemoration and named after the Latin word for Dignity of the Victims of the • 27 January: International Day door (ianua), since January is Crime of Genocide and of the of Commemoration in memory the door to the year. The month Prevention of this Crime of the victims of the Holocaust is conventionally thought of as being named after Janus, • 9 December: International the god of beginnings and Anti-Corruption Day transitions in Roman mythology.
01 December 2016 / January 2017
Historical Dates Jamhuri is Swahili for republic. The 5. Toyota (USD 53 580 million) holiday marks independence as well 6. IBM (USD 52 500 million) • 1 December 1955: Rosa Parks, an as Kenya becoming a republic, one 7. Samsung (USD 51 808 million) African American, was arrested in year later on 12th December 1964. 8. Amazon (USD 50 338 million) Alabama, for refusing to give up 9. Mercedes-Benz her seat to a white man and move • 17 December 1903: The Wright (USD 43 490 million) to the back section of a municipal brothers made their first flight 10. GE (USD 43 130 million) bus, resulting in a year-long boycott with the first powered, of the city bus system by African controlled airplanes. Americans and legal action ending Interbrand’s top growing racial segregation on buses. • 27 December 1945: The brands in 2016 International Monetary Fund was • 5 December 1492: Christopher created with the signing of an Columbus discovered Haiti. agreement by 29 nations. 1. Facebook (+48% USD 32 593 million) • 6 December 1865: The United • 1 January 1901: The 2. Amazon States abolished slavery by Commonwealth of Australia (+33% USD 50 338 million) ratifying the 13th Amendment to was founded as six former British 3. LEGO (+25% USD 6 691 million) the US Constitution. colonies became six states with 4. Nissan (+22% USD 11 066 million) Edmund Barton as the first 5. Adobe (+21% USD 7 586 million) • 8 December 1991: The leaders of prime minister. Russia, Belarus and Ukraine signed an agreement dissolving the USSR • 7 January 1714: A patent was Awards (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) issued for the first typewriter and establishing the Commonwealth designed by British inventor of Independent States. Henry Mill “for the impressing Awarded a gold ranking, for the fifth or transcribing of letters singly time in the World Trademark Review • 9 December 1948: The United or progressively one after another, 1000 2017 guide, which features the Nations General Assembly as in writing.” leading national and international unanimously approved the trademark practitioners from around Convention on the Prevention • 10 January 1946: The first meeting the globe. and Punishment of the Crime of the United Nations General of Genocide. Assembly took place in London with delegates from 51 countries. Notable victory for • 10 December 1896: Swedish The UN superseded its predecessor, Coulson Harney in chemist Alfred Nobel died at the League of Nations. San Remo, Italy. He left most of his Fineline Industries wealth in trust, to fund the awards • 30 January 1948: Mahatma Gandhi Limited v Safepak Limited that would become known as the was assassinated in New Delhi, Nobel prizes, which recognise India, by a religious fanatic. Gandhi The Industrial Property Tribunal of persons who have made valuable had ended British rule in India Kenya, in a precedent setting case, contributions to humanity. through nonviolent resistance. has ruled that a person would have the right to commence a revocation • 10 December 1948: The General or invalidation action to challenge an Assembly of the United Nations Interbrand’s top 10 industrial design even after the lapse adopted and proclaimed the global brands of 2016 of the statutorily provided time Universal Declaration of limitation of nine months under the Human Rights. and their values Industrial Property Act.
• 12 December 1963: Kenya achieved 1. Apple (USD 178 119 million) In a unanimous decision delivered on independence after 43 years of 2. Google (USD 133 252 million) 9 December 2016, the Tribunal allowed British rule. It is a public holiday 3. Coca-Cola (USD 73 102 million) an application by Fineline Industries referred to as Jamhuri day. 4. Microsoft (USD 72 795 million) Limited for extension of time within
02 December 2016 / January 2017
which to bring an action for the Commentary: the disputed names. They alleged that revocation/ invalidation of Industrial Innscor registered marks in Rwanda Design No 646 registered at the The Tribunal departed from its that had similar elements to their prior Kenya Industrial Property Institute previous decisions in which it had ruled registered marks. in favour of Safepak Limited. The that it did not have the jurisdiction Tribunal ruled that a person who to extend the nine month time limit The court dismissed the suit by Innscor, seeks the exercise of the Tribunal’s provided under the statute. In making finding that it had blackmailed the discretion in that regard would need the decision it was acknowledged that Rwandan companies and ruled that the to show genuine reasons for the it would be unfair to lock out persons, case has no legal ground in Rwanda delay in bringing the revocation or especially foreign entities, with similar and the two local firms should be invalidation action. industrial design registrations from compensated with RWF 2 million. around the world from commencing The Court stated that the legal status The Tribunal agreed that Fineline had revocation/invalidation actions against would only be possible if Rwanda acted with appropriate dispatch in the industrial designs registered in Kenya was signatory to the Apostille Treaty circumstances of the case in bringing on the basis of the nine month time “Convention Apostille de la Haye” – the application for extension of time. limit provided under the Industrial an international certification treaty which Additionally the Tribunal agreed Property Act. gives foreign firms a right to pursue that there were fundamental issues legal property rights in another country’s raised in the prospective revocation/ The decision means that in accordance court system. Property rights lawsuits invalidation proceedings that gave with international best practice, a have become common in Rwanda after basis for it to exercise discretion to person may bring an action seeking the establishment of the Business and extend time. revocation/ invalidation of an industrial Commercial law court four years ago. design on the Kenyan register beyond Fineline had brought the revocation/ the statutory period of nine months Details on this story are available here. invalidation action under Section provided sufficient reason for the 103(1) and (2) of the Industrial delay is shown. Source: KTPress Property Act. The Tribunal agreed with Fineline’s arguments that these “The Look”: Truworths/ two provisions were distinct rather Developments in Ackermans battle than continuous with Section 103(1) the Intellectual being without a time limit and Section The Supreme Court of Appeal of 103(2) requiring that a revocation Property Arena South Africa recently upheld an appeal action be brought within nine months by Pepkor Retail (Proprietary) Limited, after registration of the industrial Africa which trades as Ackermans, against design (hence the extension of an order restraining it from using the time application). Chicken Inn and Pizza Inn phrase “The look for less” sought by suit backfires on international Truworths Limited. Truworths is the Safepak has filed a design franchise trademark proprietor in South Africa of infringement case before the High the trademark “The look” in class 25 for Court which has been stayed pending South Africa’s Innscor International clothing, which is used in the fashion the determination of the revocation Limited filed a law suit at Nyarugenge retail industry. In response, Ackermans proceedings by the Industrial commercial court in Rwanda accusing filed a counter-application for the Property Tribunal. two locally incorporated restaurants removal of Truworths’ mark from the Pizza Inn Limited and Chicken Inn Trademarks Register based on non- Fineline Industries Limited was Limited for illegally using its trademarks. distinctiveness, which was also upheld represented by the firm of Coulson The South African company owns the by the Supreme Court. Harney while Safepak Limited was Chicken Inn and Pizza Inn restaurants represented by the firm of in Kenya and Uganda and was looking The Court stated that Truworths had Kaplan & Stratton. to expand to other countries in the failed to produce any evidence of the region. In their defence, the Rwandese public perception of the mark and only Coulson Harney lawyers acting on this companies turned the tables on Innscor adduced evidence merely illustrating use matter: John Syekei, Anthony Njogu, by arguing that they were registered of the mark. This confirms the principle Cecil Kuyo, and Effie Omondi. in 2013 when they started trading in previously followed by the courts that
03 December 2016 / January 2017
“use does not equal distinctiveness”. the IPO and the National Copyright The mobile app gold rush The Court accepted Ackermans’ Administration of China were agreed. may be over application and ordered that Truworths’ Additionally, the China-Britain trademark “The look” be removed from Business Council (CBBC) and Chinese Ten years ago, Apple announced the the Trademarks Register. e-commerce platform JD.com signed iPhone, which soon gave birth to the a co-operative agreement to reduce App Store and the resulting broader To read the full judgement click here. online counterfeiting. app ecosystem. That industry has now matured, having reached critical mass, Source: South Africa’s Department of Justice For more on this story click here. according to a new report from Flurry. and Constitutional Development website While there’s still some growth to be Source: World IP Review seen, that growth is slowing. Many app categories are now growing at Global the expense of others, when before, Alibaba sues vendors of all were growing in tandem. fake Swarovski watches General IP News This indicates that apps have maxed Chinese e-commerce Company out on the finite resource that is users’ 11th Edition of Nice Classification Alibaba Group Holding Limited has time. That is, drawing attention to comes into force sued two alleged online counterfeit a new app will mean having to shift vendors. The vendors are said to users away from others. This could be The Nice Classification, Eleventh have used the company’s Taobao a problem for new app businesses — Edition, version 2017 (NCL 11-2017), website to sell counterfeit Swarovski especially those that mean to take on became effective on 1 January 2017. watches. The action was commenced the incumbents like 2016’s most used Trademark owners will benefit from after the site was labelled a haven apps: Facebook, Messenger, Google, amendments to 15 class headings for counterfeits by United States Gmail, Instagram, Amazon, Apple and the addition of 334 new terms, regulators. The lawsuit is the first Music and others. The firm found as determined by the Committee legal action by an e-commerce site in that overall app usage is only up a of Experts of the Nice Union (the China against vendors of counterfeit moderate amount — 11% year-over- Committee) during its 26th session in goods. In its claim, Alibaba seeks year, compared with 58% in the 2015 Geneva in 2016. Amendments to class USD 202 000 in damages for ‘violation annual report. However, time spent headings and associated Explanatory of contract and goodwill.’ The lawsuit in apps is soaring, up 69% over Notes aim to further clarify the scope is part of the Company’s larger efforts last year. of a particular class. to weed out counterfeit goods on its shopping sites. To read this story click here. To read this story click here. The Nice Classification may be accessed on the The Chief Platform Governance Source: TechCrunch WIPO website here. Officer of Alibaba Group stated in a statement that the Company is keen Source: World Intellectual Property to protect brand owners by punishing Patent Organisation (WIPO) counterfeiters. In an effort to combat copyright infringement, the Company A rush to patent the China and UK strengthen IP ties has tightened its policies and made blockchain is a sign of the it easier for brands to make requests technology’s promise The UK and China have strengthened for the removal of counterfeits. In this intellectual property ties during regard, the Company closed about For fans of bitcoin, a digital currency, visits from officials to each country. 180,000 stores on its Taobao platform the year got off to a volatile start. In December the CEO of the UK and took down 380 million product On 5 January one bitcoin changed Intellectual Property Office (IPO) listings over the course of 2016. hands for nearly USD 1 150 – almost visited Beijing, Guangzhou and Despite these efforts, the United States as much as the record set three years Chengdu. The Chinese vice minister Office of the Trade Representative ago. It has since dropped by 33%. of the State Administration for Industry in December placed Alibaba on a Elsewhere in the land of monetary & Commerce (SAIC) made a trip to blacklist for counterfeits. bits, things move more slowly but the UK in December. During the visits, trouble is brewing: a potential patent 2017 bilateral work plans between the To read this story click here. war looms over the blockchain, a IPO and the State Intellectual Property distributed ledger that authenticates Office on patents and designs, the Source: Bloomberg and records every bitcoin transaction. IPO and SAIC on trademarks, and 04 December 2016 / January 2017
Heated fights over intellectual report include Amazon, Bayer, was false and misleading. The suit property are nothing new in promising InterDigital, Philips, Microsoft and Nike. was dismissed and the parties agreed technology markets. But given that on a settlement. Representatives for the blockchain is expected to shake To read this story click here. both companies declined to provide up everything from the way precious To access the report click here. further details about the settlement, diamonds are safeguarded to the way saying it was confidential. shares are traded, the legal fights Source: PR Newswire could be especially fierce. To read more on this click here. US inventor sues Nissan On the face of it, the blockchain does for Patent Infringement Source: Law360 not lend itself easily to staking out intellectual-property claims. Bitcoin’s Joseph Fleming, a US-based inventor Jury rules in favour of Arista creator, known only by his pseudonym, has sued car manufacturer Nissan in patent dispute with Cisco Satoshi Nakamoto, published a for patent infringement. In the suit, paper about his invention, coded Fleming argued that Nissan infringed Following a long-running patent and the first implementation and then claims 1, 8, 9, 10, 13, 14, 16 and 17 of US copyright dispute between Arista disappeared — meaning that the core patent number 5 877 677. The patent Networks and Cisco, a jury at the of the technology is now part of the is titled “Control of air bag activation Northern District of California has public domain and only important in vehicles by occupancy weight” ruled in favour of Arista. The verdict additions and variations could be and was published at the US Patent is the latest in sprawling litigation patented. Financial firms are among and Trademark Office in November between Cisco, a major networking the most assiduous filers: MasterCard, 1996. The suit states that the patent equipment company, and Arista, a for instance, is seeking four payment- is “directed to an automotive air bag fast-growing rival. In the suit, Cisco related patents; Goldman Sachs has system and method which restricts claimed that Arista infringed one or put in for one outlining a distributed activation of an air bag to situations more patent claims, and infringed its ledger that can process foreign- in which the weight of the seat copyright for its user interfaces and exchange transactions. occupant meets or exceeds a specified sought roughly USD 335 million in amount.” The suit further states that damages. Cisco is fighting to preserve To read this story click here. the US Department of Transportation its position as a dominant market regulations require the installation of player and looking to brush off its Source: The Economist such a system in all vehicles. According rival founded by former top Cisco to the suit, Nissan has appropriated executives and engineers. Although Top 100 innovators generate USD the plaintiff’s technology for itself and the jury ruled that Cisco successfully 4 trillion in revenue, says report is using the technology in its vehicles. argued that Arista infringed its copyright for its user interfaces, it Research company Clarivate To read more on this click here. said that Arista had proved fair use. Analytics has produced a report outlining 100 leading innovators. Source: IP Era To read more on this click here. Now in its sixth year, the 2016 Top 100 Global Innovators report reveals Gillette settles patent Source: Fortune a prominent shift in strategy among suit with rival the world’s top innovators. Notably, 3 200 patents worldwide the volume of patents filed has Shaving company Gillette has for Ford in 2016 decreased while grant rates have settled a patent dispute surrounding increased. That trend, combined with three-bladed razors with Edgewell The US Patent and Trademark Office a significant commitment to R&D Personal Care, the manufacturers has granted about 1 500 US patents spending, showcases an increased of Schick men’s razors. Gillette filed to Ford employees so far this year – commitment to quality over quantity a suit in August accusing Edgewell more than any other automaker for commercializing new inventions. of deceptive acts, false advertising and a 25% increase on 2015, the Together, the firms on the list and infringement of its patents. company said. Ford said it has also generated more than USD 4 trillion The labelling on the Schick razors been granted 1 700 patents in other revenue in 2015 and spent more includes the line “Shaves as good or countries, bringing its total to more than USD 227 billion on research and better than Mach3” which, according than 3 200 patents worldwide this development. Those listed in the to Gillette, the manufacturer of Mach3, year. Among the new patents is an
05 December 2016 / January 2017
invention for equipping autonomous YouTube and NMPA reach and facilitate copyright infringement. vehicles with drones. The system royalty deal MSI has denied the allegations. deploys a drone from an autonomous vehicle to map the surrounding area YouTube and the American National Details of this story are available here. beyond what vehicle sensors can Music Publishers’ Association (NMPA) detect. Vehicle passengers control have negotiated an agreement to Source: INQUIRER.net the drone using the car’s infotainment distribute royalties for music used or navigation system. in videos where ownership of the Duran Duran lose court music was previously unknown. The battle over US copyright For more on this story click here. agreement will result in unclaimed to their songs royalties being paid to publishers and Source: IP Strategy News songwriters, and will “help solve the Duran Duran band members have lost problem of attribution” on YouTube, a court battle over the US rights to Copyright according to the NMPA. some of their most famous songs. The band had entered into a publishing Chinese companies YouTube will run an opt-in agreement for assignment of their to pay Disney for period from 12 December 2016 to copyright to Gloucester Place Music copyright infringement 28 February 2017, following which Limited, a company registered in the it will provide participating publishers UK. Simon Le Bon and other members A Shanghai Court has ordered with a list of songs that YouTube of the Duran Duran band had been two Chinese companies to pay was previously unable to obtain arguing that US copyright laws gave compensation of over USD 194 000 ownership information for. After them the right to call for a reversion to Disney Enterprises Inc and Pixar for a three-month claiming window, of copyright after 35 years. However unfair competition and infringement publishers will receive the accrued the 35-year rule in America gave of intellectual property rights. Disney royalties for the musical works used. artists from the late 1970s onwards Enterprises Inc and Pixar, holders of The process will be repeated for a chance to escape those contracts the copyrights of animated comedies future twelve-month usage periods, and claim back ownership of their Cars and Cars 2 together with the beginning on 1 January 2016 and copyright. Lawyers for Gloucester character images, sued G-Point and ending on 31 December 2019. Place Music successfully argued that Bluemtv after they found images, titles the agreements were governed by and posters of animated movie The To read more on this click here. the English laws of contract which Autobots resembled those of Cars and prevented the reversion. As a result, Cars 2. The Autobots was produced by Source: IPPro the High Court ruling could prevent Bluemtv and released by G-Point. the pop group from seeking to claim MSI sued for copyright back their copyright of their first three The court stated that the images of infringement for using an albums: Duran Duran, Rio, and Seven the main characters in The Autobots, advertisement photo and The Ragged Tiger, as well as K1 and K2, infringed on the copyright their Bond theme “A View to a Kill”. of the characters Lightning McQueen Computer Hardware manufacturer and Francesco Bernoulli in Cars and MSI is being accused of using a Details on this story are available here. Cars 2. The court further stated that cosplayer’s photo as ad material while the Chinese title of the movie without their permission. The Source: The Independent had a different meaning to the Disney cosplayer Lindze A’la Mode and productions and could not be seen as photographer Allison Rose filed a unfair competition; the resemblance in complaint in the state of Georgia. Trademark the visual effect of the movie’s name In the suit, the two are accusing MSI on the poster constituted an act of of using an image taken in 2013 for Slam dunk for Michael Jordan unfair competition despite the overall a calendar and digitally manipulating in China trademark dispute difference in the poster design. it for use in the company’s advertisement. They allege that Following a lawsuit filed in Shanghai in For more on this story click here. MSI provided and distributed false February 2012, the Supreme People’s copyright management information Court of China has ruled in favour Source: Reuters with the intent to enable, conceal of the legendary Basketball player,
06 December 2016 / January 2017
Michael Jordan in a trademark dispute attention to the registered shapes as Eyewear company Specsavers with Chinese sportswear company indicators of origin. Additionally, the secure registration of Qiaodan Sports. The Court ruled that judge found that the shapes had trademark “should’ve” the Chinese sportswear company must not acquired distinctive character. stop using the characters for Jordan’s The eyewear manufacturing company, name, read as ‘Qiaodan’ in Chinese. Details on this story are available here. Specsavers, has managed to obtain In 1998, Qiaodan Sports registered a trademark registration for the mark the terms ‘Qiaodan’, ‘Qiao Dan’ and Source: World IP Review ‘Should’ve’. The mark is coined from the Chinese character translation the company’s well-known tagline of ‘Jordan’. ‘Qiaodan’ is the pinyin KitKat trademark case sent “Should’ve gone to Specsavers”. translation of ‘Jordan’ in Chinese. Pinyin back to EUIPO by General Court The move to register the mark was is the system for transcribing Mandarin followed by a string of debate over Chinese characters into the Latin script. The European Union Intellectual companies attempting to appropriate The court added that the Chinese Property Office (EUIPO) will have commonly-used words. One news firm’s actions had displayed malicious to reconsider a trademark dispute article published in The Guardian intent by registering trademarks for between Nestlé and Mondelez, over read, “we are witnessing, some fear, Jordan’s Chinese name. In a statement the shape of the KitKat bar, after the a rampant corporate takeover of our sent to Reuters, Jordan said “I am General Court said that distinctive public language”. happy that the Supreme People’s Court character must be proved in all has recognised the right to protect EU member states. Details on this story are available here. my name through its ruling in the trademark cases. Chinese consumers In 2002 Nestlé filed a trademark Source: World Trademark Review deserve to know that Qiaodan Sports application to register the 3D shape and its products have no connection of the four-finger KitKat bar. Mondelez English spa wins stormy to me.” filed an action in 2007, arguing legal battle over naming of that in considering the application Liverpool’s Titanic Hotel To read more on this click here. to register the KitKat shape as a trademark, the EUIPO Board of Appeal A bitter trademark dispute between Source: Reuters had only considered evidence of two major hotel and property distinctiveness acquired through use companies over use of the name Nestle lose “KitKat” trademark in 10 member states. At the time of ‘Titanic’ has finally come to an end. appeal in Singapore Nestlé’s trademark application, the EU Property Renaissance set up the had 15 member states. Today it has Titanic Spa in 2006 in the former Nestlé has lost a trademark battle 28. The Court said that in a case such textile mills in Huddersfield which in Singapore centring on the shape as this one, where the mark does not was known as Titanic mills for its size. of its KitKat chocolate bar. On have inherent distinctive character Stanley Dock Companies opened Thursday, November 24, the Singapore throughout the EU, the distinctive the Titanic Hotel Liverpool in 2014 Court of Appeal dismissed Nestlé’s character acquired through use “must with references to the hotel spa as lawsuit against Singapore-based Petra be shown throughout the territory of T-spa. Titanic Huddersfield lodged a Foods (now known as Delfi), affirming the European Union, that is, in all the complaint about the use of the name a 2014 decision by the Singapore High Member States concerned”. But Nestlé T-spa citing customer confusion and Court. Nestlé had alleged that the had shown distinctiveness “only in saying the spa had received calls two-finger and four-finger shape of a substantial part of the territory of and emails from customers who KitKat chocolate bars were infringed the European Union”. EUIPO will now believed the two were the same by Petra’s Take-It products, which also have to reconsider the case and assess entity. The Liverpool hotel however feature two-finger and four-finger the evidence available from all the later rebranded to ‘Maya Blue Spa’. chocolate wafer bars. The decision member states. The Huddersfield spa still took action from the lower court held that the claiming that the use of the word shapes were not inherently distinctive, To read more on this click here. Titanic in the hotel’s name was a as the ordinary consumer of chocolate breach of its trademark. The judge in products would not pay particular Source: Irish Legal this case noted that there had indeed
07 December 2016 / January 2017
been infringement by the Liverpool line of its alcohol beverage products, Our work hotel but that the necessary steps had including whiskey, “in order to knock-off already been taken to make amends by the appearance and unfairly trade on Over the period from December changing the name in order to avoid the reputation of Diageo’s extremely to mid-January we have: confusion in the future. popular Bulleit brand bourbon and rye whiskey”. Diageo acquired Bulleit • Filed approximately 30 trademark To read more on this click here. whiskey in 2001 along with all of the applications across East Africa; trademark and trade dress rights and Source: Belfast Telegraph related goodwill associated with the • Assisted with approximately 45 business. Diageo is seeking a jury trial, trademark renewals, recordals of BMW succeeds in Chinese injunctive relief, destruction of infringing mergers, changes of names and trademark case materials such as labels, a payment of assignments of trademarks; and all profits, damages, triple damages The Shanghai Intellectual Property for wilful infringement, and costs. • Filed 10 patent applications and Court has fined two Chinese companies renewals of patent annuities. for registering trademarks similar to To read this story click here. car maker BMW’s. The companies, • Instructed on 6 major IP litigation and the founder of one of them, Source: World IP Review matters before the High Court were ordered to pay BMW 3 million Yuan (approximately USD 432 000), according to news website Shanghai Daily. Deguo Baoma Group, which translates as ‘German BMW Group’, was established in July 2008 and it registered the trademark ‘BMN’ with a logo distinctly similar to the ‘BMW’ trademark. Fashion firm Chuangjia, the second firm fined, then used the trademark on products including clothes, shoes and bags, changing the logo over the years to more closely resemble BMW’s.
To read more on this click here.
Source: Business Times
Diageo battles Sazerac in whiskey trademark claim
Diageo has taken up arms against rival Sazerac in a dispute centring on whiskey. Filed on 16 December 2016 at the US District Court for the Southern District of New York, the suit claims that Sazerac has committed wilful acts of trademark infringement, unfair competition, trade dress infringement and dilution. Diageo said Sazerac had diluted a trademark by redesigning the bottle and label for a
08 December 2016 / January 2017
Our Team
Partners
JOHN SYEKEI ANTHONY NJOGU TERRY MWANGO Head of IP Department IP Litigation IP Litigation
Trademark, design, copyright and Litigation before various courts and Litigation before various courts and patent litigation, cancellation and tribunals (KIPI), dispute resolution, tribunals (KIPI), dispute resolution, opposition matters, trademarks, arbitration (local and international) arbitration (local and international) advertising, copyright, e-commerce, it contracts, franchising, licensing, E: [email protected] E: [email protected] foreign filing – Africa, counterfeiting and counterfeit raids practice
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DAVID OPIJAH DANIEL MWATHE CECIL KUYO IP IP IP Litigation
Patent prosecution, patent advice, Advertising, copyright, e-commerce, Litigation before various courts and trademarks, design, copyright it contracts, franchising, licensing, tribunals (KIPI), dispute resolution, and patent litigation, cancellation commercial contracts, foreign arbitration (local and international) and opposition matters, foreign filing – Africa filing – Africa, counterfeiting and E: [email protected] counterfeit raids practice E: [email protected]
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KRYSTAL MUINDI AGNES AKAL EDDAH KIAI IP IP Litigation IP
Trademark and patent renewals, Litigation before various Advertising, copyright, e-commerce, annuities, trademark clearance courts and statutory (KIPI) and IT contracts, franchising, licensing, searches, foreign filing – Africa arbitral tribunals commercial contracts
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