Tag archives: brand protection

Are tougher days coming for approval of agribusiness certification trademarks in Australia?

Georgina Hey (AU)Amanda Caldwell (AU)By Georgina Hey (AU) and Amanda Caldwell (AU) on Posted in Advertising, Trademark
On 22 November 2018 the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) issued its initial assessment of the rules governing use of four certification trade marks in the name of OxoPak Pty Ltd, indicating its intention deny approval for the certification rules, and therefore the trade marks will be denied.… Continue reading

Australian Trademarks Law Review – Edition 2

Frances Drummond (AU)Sophie Lees (AU)Isobel Taylor (AU)By Frances Drummond (AU), Sophie Lees (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on Posted in Trademark
2018 marked the publication of the first Australian Trademarks Law Review from the Law Review series. The Law Review collates cross-border legal insights and analysis across a range of practice areas and is a useful resource for in-house counsel of global organizations. Following the publishing of the first edition of the Australian chapter of 2018 … Continue reading

Recent developments for IPR protection in China

Justin Davidson (HK)By Justin Davidson (HK) on Posted in Copyright
On November 5th 2018, at the inauguration ceremony of the first-ever China International Import Expo held in Shanghai, President Xi Jinping reassured investors, especially foreign enterprises, on the administration’s determination to protect their intellectual property rights in China. In the speech, President Xi announced that in order to significantly increase the cost of infringing IPR … Continue reading

Bill C-86 — significant changes to Canada’s IP regime

Amy Grenon (CA)By Amy Grenon (CA) on Posted in Copyright, General, Trademark
The federal government’s recent omnibus budget bill, Bill C-86 tabled October 29th, 2018, proposes significant changes to Canada’s IP laws. Division 7 of the Bill is intended to implement many aspects of the government’s IP strategy announced in April 2018, and targets the Patent Act, the Trade-marks Act, and Copyright Act; provides for a new … Continue reading

No use crying over spilt (plant-based-dairy-free-alternatives-to) milk?

Georgina Hey (AU)Isobel Taylor (AU)By Georgina Hey (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on Posted in Advertising
Every trendy café these days seems to have a selection of dairy-free milk alternatives as long as a wine list, from the usual suspects like soy, coconut and almond, to more unusual new favourites like rice, hemp, pea, flax and oat. With vegan, dairy-free or plant-based diets becoming more and more popular for health, environmental, … Continue reading

Amended Australian IP laws receive Royal Assent with little fanfare

Georgina Hey (AU)Isobel Taylor (AU)By Georgina Hey (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on Posted in Copyright, General, Trademark
On 24 August 2018, the creatively named Intellectual Property Laws Amendment (Productivity Commission Response Part 1 and Other Measures) Bill 2018 quietly received Royal Assent, with some parts of the new Act entering into force the following day. As the name indicates, the primary focus of the new legislation is to implement the recommendations made … Continue reading

(Don’t) knock it off!

Robyn McLaren (CA)By Robyn McLaren (CA) on Posted in Counterfeiting
The prevalence of counterfeit goods in Canada reflects weak laws and almost non-existent criminal enforcement within the country, resulting in an appearance of very limited protection for the intellectual property rights of brand owners. As discussed in a recent post on the topic, Canada has once again been named to the “Priority” Watch List in … Continue reading

V Energy loses a mother of a battle over color trademark: Australia court’s decision in Frucor v Coca-Cola

Helen Macpherson (AU)Alyson Poole (AU)By Helen Macpherson (AU) and Alyson Poole (AU) on Posted in Trademark
We, as consumers, regularly associate colours with our favourite brands as we stroll down supermarket aisles and peer at billboards and banners in shopping centres.  But for brand holders, gaining protection for proprietary colours is not a walk in the (green) park.  The recent decision of Frucor Beverages Limited v The Coca-Cola Company [2018] FCA … Continue reading

Social media influencers – to “like” or not to “like?”

Frances Drummond (AU)Rebecca Brenikov (AU)By Frances Drummond (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on Posted in Advertising, General
Today, social media influencers are a key resource used by businesses to engage with consumers. Influencers include celebrities, bloggers or simply popular social media users in speciality areas like beauty or travel. Social media influencers’ posts can attract thousands, and sometimes millions, of views and likes. Such exposure allows businesses to instantly engage with a … Continue reading

Changes proposed regarding parallel imports – An exhausting concept for Australian trade mark owners?

Frances Drummond (AU)Rebecca Brenikov (AU)By Frances Drummond (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on Posted in Trademark
In this article, we consider; the changes to the Trade Marks Act proposed in respect of parallel imports which the Draft Explanatory Memorandum states are aimed at ensuring that the law “better meet[s] the objective of facilitating the parallel importation of goods into Australia to the benefit of consumers by limiting the strategic use of … Continue reading

The European Commission has its say: EU trade marks post-Brexit

Georgina Hey (AU)Sophie Lees (AU)By Georgina Hey (AU) and Sophie Lees (AU) on Posted in Trademark
On 28 February 2018, the European Commission released its draft withdrawal agreement setting out a proposal on the arrangements for the withdrawal of the UK from the EU (Withdrawal Agreement). The full text of the Withdrawal Agreement can be viewed here: European Commission’s Draft Withdrawal Agreement dated 28 February 2018 (see Title IV on Intellectual … Continue reading

Cybersquatters – How to protect your brand from unwanted ‘guests’ online

Georgina Hey (AU)Rebecca Brenikov (AU)By Georgina Hey (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on Posted in Advertising, Trademark
The internet is now the normal conduit for everyday personal, commercial and social transactions. It is more important than ever to ensure that your consumers know where to find your business online, and that no third parties are seeking to trade off your reputation in the online space. Domain names are the primary form of … Continue reading

Shocking your clients just became passé: US Court takes away the edge from scandalous brands

Frances Drummond (AU)Isobel Taylor (AU)By Frances Drummond (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on Posted in Trademark
Thanks to two recent rulings of the US Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals of the Federal Circuit Court, trade marks containing “disparaging”, “immoral” and “scandalous” matter are no longer barred from obtaining registration in the United States of America. In the past, the US Patent and Trade Mark Office (USPTO) had the power … Continue reading

What Brexit means for IP: The UK Law Society, the IP Bar, CIPA and CITMA weigh in on Brexit strategy

Georgina Hey (AU)Rebecca Brenikov (AU)By Georgina Hey (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on Posted in Advertising, General, Trademark
It’s no surprise that many in the professional and legal services industries are putting increasing thought into what the post-Brexit world will, or should, look like. The Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) in the UK has been the latest body to put its two cents (or pennies) into the mix. Brand owners from all … Continue reading

Managing your products when a patent expires – how good brand management can maintain product and brand awareness, and build market share

Georgina Hey (AU)By Georgina Hey (AU) on Posted in Advertising
The Australian Government’s recently expressed interest in cracking down on misuses of market power may have left some patent holders with concerns about the proposed amendments to the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (the Act). All the fuss relates to section 46 of the Act: the provision which prohibits a company with a substantial degree … Continue reading

‘Apples, Beatles and four decades of litigation’ – Cautionary tales for start-ups settling on a new brand name

Georgina Hey (AU)Isobel Taylor (AU)By Georgina Hey (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on Posted in Trademark
Apple: the world’s most successful company, with an estimated worth of three-quarters of a trillion dollars. It’s no wonder that would-be tech entrepreneurs around the world are sitting around in black turtlenecks, jeans and New Balance sneakers, poring over Steve Jobs’ biography and trying to work out how they might emulate his success in their … Continue reading

Telstra hits a home run in defending its “Go to Rio” Olympiads

Frances Drummond (AU)Isobel Taylor (AU)By Frances Drummond (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on Posted in Advertising
Last year, we reported on a decision of the Federal Court of Australia, in which the Australian Olympic Committee (AOC) unsuccessfully sought injunctive relief to prevent Telstra from running its “Go to Rio” advertising campaign in the lead-up to the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio.[1] In an attempt to preserve the value of its … Continue reading

Rebranding 4.0: Why authenticity matters to socially-aware consumers, and how to convey it

Georgina Hey (AU)Rebecca Brenikov (AU)By Georgina Hey (AU) and Rebecca Brenikov (AU) on Posted in Advertising, Trademark
Increasingly affordable renewables, coupled with consumers’ sensitivity to environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues, are driving a profound shift in energy markets worldwide. Nowhere is this more apparent than in brand equity, and the trust levels displayed by the public towards traditional energy businesses versus green, dynamic start-ups. Rebranding is a powerful tool to close … Continue reading

Promoting an innovation economy – Australian Government responds to Productivity Commission’s report into IP arrangements

Georgina Hey (AU)Isobel Taylor (AU)By Georgina Hey (AU) and Isobel Taylor (AU) on Posted in Copyright, Trademark
We recently published an article on the potential impact on the Productivity Commission’s Inquiry Report on Intellectual Property Arrangements (Report) on Australia’s innovation economy. The Australian Government has now responded to the Report, supporting the Commission’s recommendations to reform the patent system, but stopping short of embracing the extensive copyright overhaul recommended in the Report, … Continue reading

Extending Brand Protection to Canada

Mark Edward Davis (CA)By Mark Edward Davis (CA) on Posted in Trademark
Brand protection is important.  Foreign service providers interested in extending their brand equity to Canada will be encouraged by the Federal Court’s recent decision in AT&T Intellectual Property II, L.P v. Lecours, Hebert Avocats Inc., 2017 FC 734.  In this case, AT&T was able to protect its brand and maintain its Canadian trademark registration for … Continue reading

Australian Modern Slavery Act: Why big brands will have nowhere to hide

Sophie Lees (AU)By Sophie Lees (AU) on Posted in Advertising
The Australian Government has just confirmed that new legislation will be introduced requiring large Australian businesses to report annually on their efforts to address modern slavery. The result will be a framework similar to the corporate-focussed legislation enacted in the UK in 2015 and similar initiatives that are under discussion in other jurisdictions including the … Continue reading
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