Posts Tagged: "International"

Renegotiate NAFTA to Make it the Gold Standard in IP Protection

As President Trump embarks on the renegotiation of NAFTA, it is critical that we seize the opportunity to make it the gold standard in intellectual property rights protections… The stakes are tremendous and cannot be ignored.  In total, it is estimated that intellectual-property theft costs the United States approximately $600 billion per year.  A recent New York Times article notes that this is the “greatest transfer of wealth in history”.

A TWIST in the tale: Not your typical cola war

This case was not your typical “cola war”, but rather involved TWIST, the well-known carbonated beverage brand which has been available in South Africa since the 1970s (originally as LEMON TWIST). Atlantic is the proprietor in South Africa of the TWIST, LEMON TWIST and DIET TWIST trade marks in relation to non-alcoholic drinks falling in class 32. PepsiCo applied to register the trade marks PEPSI TWIST and a PEPSI TWIST label, also in relation to non-alcoholic beverages in class 32… In finding in favor of Atlantic in the opposition, the Court felt it necessary to only rule on the issue of confusing similarity, ie. whether the proposed PEPSI TWIST trade marks were sufficiently similar to Atlantic’s trade marks to create a likelihood of deception or confusion.

ITC institutes Section 337 investigation into Hisense Wi-Fi TVs infringing on Sharp patents

On Wednesday, September 27th, the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) announced that it had decided to institute a patent infringement investigation against Chinese electronics manufacturer Hisense (SHA:600060). The investigation, which follows from a Section 337 complaint filed by Japanese electronics firm Sharp (TYO:6753), will seek to determine whether certain Wi-Fi enabled devices and their components, specifically televisions which are capable of wireless Internet connectivity, which are imported into the U.S. by Hisense infringe upon two patents covering similar technologies held by Sharp.

Nokia receives favorable arbitration award on patent license with LG Electronics

According to the press release issued by Nokia, licensing revenue from the agreement with LG will be reflected in the Finnish telecom’s earnings report for the third quarter of 2017 even though the expected revenues remain confidential at this time. The press release quotes Maria Varsellona, Nokia’s chief legal officer, as saying: “The use of independent arbitration to resolve differences in patent cases is a recognized best practice. We believe that this award confirms the quality of Nokia’s patent portfolio.” Varsellona also noted that Nokia sees additional opportunities for patent licensing agreements in at least the mobile communications market.

China’s copyright regulator tells foreign and domestic music companies to improve copyright licensing, reducing piracy

In mid-September, the federal government of the People’s Republic of China issued statements which indicate that the country is looking to expand upon recent rhetoric over increased protections for intellectual property. According to state-controlled media outlet Xinhua, China’s National Copyright Administration (NCAC) informed a group of more than 20 domestic and foreign music companies that they must adhere to both market rules and international practices in order to widen licensing and improve the spread of copyrighted music online.