The Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) has refused to register a scientific abbreviation as a trademark even though the applicant was the first to discover the substance. In the matter of a trademark application by BioMedical Research Group Inc. & Anor. ([2024] SGIPOS 3), BioMedical Research Group Inc. and Macrophi Inc. sought to register the mark in […]
Tag: trademark application
AMENDMENTS TO TRADEMARK IN CIRCULAR NO.23/2023/TT-BKHCN
Further to the numerous changes introduced via Decree 65 on 23 August 2023 (https://www.mirandah.com/vietnam-updates-in-trade-mark-law/), the Vietnamese Government has on 30th November 2023 issued Circular No.23/2023/TT-BKHCN (hereinafter “Circular 23”) making more amendments to the Vietnam Intellectual Property (“IP”) laws, aimed at providing guidance for implementation, and aligning IP practice as a result of changes to the […]
Vietnam – Changes to Trademark Law and IP Enforcement
Vietnam Decree No. 65/2023/ND-CP (Decree 65) took effect on 23 August 2023. Decree 65 represents the latest state of IP rights establishment and enforcement in Vietnam. Decree 65 provides guidance on the implementation of the Intellectual Property Law 2022 (the IP Law), particularly in the realms of IP registration and enforcement. In brief, Decree 65 […]
Singapore: Importance of the use of a registered mark in a revocation action
In Singapore, a registered trademark may be susceptible to cancellation if it has not been used within five years from completion of registration, or if such use has been suspended for a continuous period of five years or more. The following case is a reminder. Comfort Lab Inc., also known as Kabushiki Kaisha Comfort Lab […]
SINGAPORE: Examiner Rejects “PARTY LIKE GATSBY” Mark for Lack of Distinctiveness
Slogans are useful tools in brand advertisements. However, as they often consist of ordinary words and phrases which are laudatory in nature, slogans generally do not meet the distinctiveness requirement for purposes of trademark registration in the absence of evidence of use. The following recent case reminds us of this. Arangur UG (haftungsbeschrankt) (applicant) applied […]
Amendments to the Rules and Regulation on Inter Partes Proceedings in the Philippines
The Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines (IPOPHL) issued a Memorandum Circular No. 2022-013 on “Amendments to the Rules and Regulations on Inter Partes Proceedings” on 27 May 2022, which took effect on 30 June 2022. These amendments are in response to challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, to ensure the continuity of operations and […]
SINGAPORE: Use It or Lose It
A recent decision by the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore issued on September 22, 2021, shed light on the use of a registered trademark, as well as the ways in which a trademark owner can depend on its consent to a separate third party’s use of its trademark to prove genuine use. Unilever PLC (the […]
New Regulation of Ministry of Law and Human Rights Amending the Previous Implementation Regulation for Trademark Law No. 20 of 2016
On 3 February 2021, the Ministry of Law and Human Rights of Republic Indonesia issued an amended implementation regulation to support the provisions of the current Trademark Law No. 20 of 2016. This implementation regulation is No. 12 of 2021 (the “Regulation”) was issued to accelerate the timeline for prosecuting a trademark application. In Article […]
Singapore: “Champengwine” application denied due to the grounds of bad faith
“CHAMPAGNE,” in connection to wines, is a geographical indication that it is produced through certain local requirements and is grown from specific regions in France. Keep Waddling International Pte. Ltd (the applicant) and its related companies have been using the trademark “PENGWINE” as their house-mark for their wines originating from Chile since April 2004. These […]
Singapore: A Shining Example of Passing Off
The following decision issued on April 2, 2020, appears to go against Singapore’s first-to-file system and highlights the fact that prior rights (if any) in Singapore can be protected under the tort of passing off under the Trade Marks Act (TMA). Golden Cala Trading EST (applicant), incorporated in Saudi Arabia, applied to register the LENSME […]