"Innocent infringement" – the defense every patentee dreads to hear; because if it rings true, the patent owner risks no entitlement whatsoever to claiming damages and an account of all profits made from the infringement. Proper patent marking is key and this should be very important to the patent owner in order for the full […]
Publications
Singapore : Trademark Citations based on Withdrawn, Cancelled or Abandoned Applications
The Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) has recently changed its practice with respect to marks which are “treated as withdrawn” or “abandoned”. Earlier, the Registry practice included citing marks which were reflected on the Register as “Treated as Withdrawn”. Therefore, deemed withdrawn applications were also cited against other pending marks. With respect to abandoned […]
Singapore Trademark Cases: Use It or Lose It-When Online Use Is Not Enough
Festina Lotus S.A (Proprietor) is the registered proprietor of the FESTINA mark. While the Proprietor does not have any business presence in Singapore, it claimed to have offered goods for sale online through various third-party websites, namely www.bodying.com, www.watchshop.com and in particular, www.brandsfever.com (Brandsfever), which is accessible by Singapore consumers. The Proprietor furnished evidence of […]
Significant Changes to Indonesian Patent System
An important piece of new Indonesian patent legislation, Law No.13 of 2016, came into effect on August 26, 2016, replacing the old patent law, No.14 of 2001. Simple Patents Under the old legislation, simple patents merely covered visible product innovation. The new law has expanded the scope of protection of a simple patent to include […]
Singapore IP Policy Cases: IPOS Strengthens the Criteria on Assessment of Post-grant Amendments
In Singapore, post-grant amendments are allowed at the discretion of the court or the Registrar. The amendments are assessed under Section 84(3) of the Patents Act. The court or the Registrar may allow the amendments to the specification of the patent if: (a) The amendment does not result in disclosing additional matter; or (b) The […]
Mandatory Recordal of IP License Agreements in Indonesia
The Ministry of Law and Human Rights (MoLHR) of Indonesia recently issued regulations outlining the procedure for recordal of IP license agreements in Indonesia. It should be noted that while the regulations were recently issued, the law requiring recordal of license agreements has been in place since 2000 (industrial designs), 2001 (trademarks and patents) and […]
Singapore Trademark Cases: Honest Concurrent Use of Marks
A previously unreported decision of the Principal Assistant Registrar (PAR) from October 2015 has provided guidance to brand owners on two points. First, it assists in providing the threshold of what amounts to “honest concurrent use” in Singapore. Secondly, it establishes that once the applicant manages to prove honest concurrent use, the Registrar shall not […]
Singapore Mirandah cases, Trademark cases: USPA Scores a Win in Polo Case
The High Court of Singapore has clarified the factors to be taken into account in the determination of likelihood of confusion, while adopting a rather novel approach to the consumer perception factor in a decision involving a trademark application for eyewear. Polo/Lauren Co LP v. United States Polo Association [2016] SGHC 32, Mar. 8, 2016. […]
Singapore Trademark Infringement cases -The Own Name Defence is Often no Defence at All
In The Audience Motivation Company Asia Pte Ltd v. AMC Live Group China (S) Pte Ltd, the Singapore Court of Appeal, in a ruling dated April 21, 2016, found in favour of the appellant, thus overturning a decision by the High Court which had dismissed the appellant’s (who was the plaintiff in the earlier suit) […]
India IP Policy, Patent Legislation: Amends Patent Rules to Expedite Grant
The Patent (Amendment) Rules, 2016 were implemented by the Indian Patent Office on 16 May 2016. The salient features of the said rules are as follows: Reduction of time to file response to First Examination Report (FER) The time allowed to respond to a FER for putting an application in order for grant has been […]