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| Photo by Andrew Wilkinson (some rights are reserved) |
Showing posts with label IP Komodo Dragon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label IP Komodo Dragon. Show all posts
Friday, April 01, 2011
IP Dragon Regains Blog from IP Komodo Dragon
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Reptilian reportage
IP Komodo may have a forked tongue, but he speaks the IP truth! He has trawled this weeks China IP news and the hottest topic appears to be sightings of IP Dragon, with fiery tongue, sighted in the vicinity and very unamused by IP Komodo's blogjacking. IP Komodo may need to beat a hasty return to Indonesia.
IP Trading a disappointment. Quanzhou Trademark Trade Center in Fujian has more than 5,000 trademarks on its books for sale, but "only 30 deals have been completed, despite the fact that many people have shown interest" Holding out for high prices, most trademark owners are declining offers. The news doesn’t tell us what is for sale.
Dilution difficulties. Swiss watchmaker OMEGA has sought to cancel a local Shenzhen company’s AOMEGA mark for cosmetics on the grounds of similarity, but lost at the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board (TRAB). OMEGA has appealed to the courts. This is one of a constant succession of such well known mark dissimilar goods cases.
China patent stats increase! Domestic applications for invention patents increased 27.9 percent in 2010 from 2009, said a senior patent official here Tuesday. SIPO received more than 391,000 applications for invention patents in 2010, the world's second most, said He Hua, State Intellectual Property Office deputy director, at a Nanjing meeting of heads of local intellectual property rights offices. 74.9 percent were submitted by domestic applicants, he said.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
continue reading ...
IP Trading a disappointment. Quanzhou Trademark Trade Center in Fujian has more than 5,000 trademarks on its books for sale, but "only 30 deals have been completed, despite the fact that many people have shown interest" Holding out for high prices, most trademark owners are declining offers. The news doesn’t tell us what is for sale.
Dilution difficulties. Swiss watchmaker OMEGA has sought to cancel a local Shenzhen company’s AOMEGA mark for cosmetics on the grounds of similarity, but lost at the Trademark Review and Adjudication Board (TRAB). OMEGA has appealed to the courts. This is one of a constant succession of such well known mark dissimilar goods cases.
China patent stats increase! Domestic applications for invention patents increased 27.9 percent in 2010 from 2009, said a senior patent official here Tuesday. SIPO received more than 391,000 applications for invention patents in 2010, the world's second most, said He Hua, State Intellectual Property Office deputy director, at a Nanjing meeting of heads of local intellectual property rights offices. 74.9 percent were submitted by domestic applicants, he said.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Guidelines on Several Issues Regarding the Applicable Law for Hearing Disputes Arising from Franchising Contracts
Almost 4 years after the Regulations for Administration of Commercial Franchising (2007) (“Regulations”) were promulgated, the Guidelines on Several Issues Regarding the Applicable Law for Hearing Disputes arising from Commercial Franchising Contracts (the “Guidelines”) were issued by the Beijing High Court on 24 February 2011. The Guidelines further define the scope of “business resourses”, the character and validity of franchising contracts, the termination of franchising contracts as well as the liabilities of the parties in case of breach. It aims to standardize the hearing of franchising related disputes so as to better regulate franchising in China.
Key points in the Guidelines are:
1. Scope of “business resources”
Article 2 of the Guidelines further defines the scope of “business resources” as: registered trade marks, enterprise logos, patent, trade name, trade secret, distinctive overall operation image and unregistered trade marks which are prior used which have reputation. The above mentioned business resources can be owned by or solely licensed to the franchisor.
2. The recognition of “franchising contracts”
Franchising contracts are those between franchisor and franchise which stipulate the rights and obligation of the parties. Article 3 & 4 of the Guidelines provide how to decide whether a contract is a franchising contract. The recognition of a franchising contract will be based on the content of the contract not the mere title of the contract, the relationship between the parties (e.g. whether the contract is signed between associated companies) and the declarations of the parties (whether the parties deny that it is a franchising contract).
3. The validity of “franchising contracts”
According to the Regulations, a franchising contract should be signed by the parties in writing and be registered with the competent authorities within 15 days of the execution of the contract (Article 8 & 11); the franchisor has to have operated at least 2 direct stores for over 1 year (Article 7); where an approval or special qualification should be obtained prior the franchising occurs, the parties shall comply with this (Article 8).
However, according to Article 6, 7, 8 and 10 of the Guideline, the validity of franchising contracts will not be affected even if: 1) the contract is not executed in writing; 2) the contract is not registered with competent authorities; 3) the franchisor does not have 2 direct stores or has operated less than 1 year; 4) the parties to the franchising did not obtain relevant approval or qualification where necessary at the commencement of the franchising but possess such approval and qualification before the dispute arises.
4. The right of the franchisee to terminate the franchising contract
Article 12 of the Regulation provides that parties to a franchising contract shall include a clause in the franchising contract to allow the franchisee to unilaterally cancel the contract. The Guidelines further stipulate that the franchisee is allowed to cancel the franchising contract within a reasonable period of time even there is no clause in the contract allowing it to do so.
The Guidelines also specifies the liability for the franchisor when the franchisor fails to comply with its obligation to disclose information to the franchisee.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
continue reading ...
Key points in the Guidelines are:
1. Scope of “business resources”
Article 2 of the Guidelines further defines the scope of “business resources” as: registered trade marks, enterprise logos, patent, trade name, trade secret, distinctive overall operation image and unregistered trade marks which are prior used which have reputation. The above mentioned business resources can be owned by or solely licensed to the franchisor.
2. The recognition of “franchising contracts”
Franchising contracts are those between franchisor and franchise which stipulate the rights and obligation of the parties. Article 3 & 4 of the Guidelines provide how to decide whether a contract is a franchising contract. The recognition of a franchising contract will be based on the content of the contract not the mere title of the contract, the relationship between the parties (e.g. whether the contract is signed between associated companies) and the declarations of the parties (whether the parties deny that it is a franchising contract).
3. The validity of “franchising contracts”
According to the Regulations, a franchising contract should be signed by the parties in writing and be registered with the competent authorities within 15 days of the execution of the contract (Article 8 & 11); the franchisor has to have operated at least 2 direct stores for over 1 year (Article 7); where an approval or special qualification should be obtained prior the franchising occurs, the parties shall comply with this (Article 8).
However, according to Article 6, 7, 8 and 10 of the Guideline, the validity of franchising contracts will not be affected even if: 1) the contract is not executed in writing; 2) the contract is not registered with competent authorities; 3) the franchisor does not have 2 direct stores or has operated less than 1 year; 4) the parties to the franchising did not obtain relevant approval or qualification where necessary at the commencement of the franchising but possess such approval and qualification before the dispute arises.
4. The right of the franchisee to terminate the franchising contract
Article 12 of the Regulation provides that parties to a franchising contract shall include a clause in the franchising contract to allow the franchisee to unilaterally cancel the contract. The Guidelines further stipulate that the franchisee is allowed to cancel the franchising contract within a reasonable period of time even there is no clause in the contract allowing it to do so.
The Guidelines also specifies the liability for the franchisor when the franchisor fails to comply with its obligation to disclose information to the franchisee.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
Monday, March 21, 2011
New rules on Criminal IP infringement released
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| Photo Danny Friedmann |
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
Friday, March 18, 2011
Online infringement and ISP liability
The IP Dragon hasn’t been seen for 2 weeks now. IP Komodo wonders if his cousin might return soon and is worried about the mess, especially since IP Komodo tends to leave the remains of his lunch lying around...
Some interesting online IPR news IP Komodo has spotted:
Chinese authors accuse Baidu, China's biggest search engine of copyright violations, by its free online excerpts of unauthorized stories and books. On March 15, World Consumer Rights Day, more than 40 writers said in an open letter that Baidu stole their work and infringed their copyrights. Fang Zhouzi, (well-known for exposing academic fraud), told Xinhua that he could find almost all of his work in Baidu's online library. A welcome change to the parade of foreign complainants, IP Komodo thinks.
The State Level AIC is about to issue new regulations on internet IPR infringement aimed particularly at at tackling online piracy and counterfeiting. Evidence and jurisdiction will be covered, according to the vice Minister who announced it at the close of the National Peoples Congress session on Monday.
ISP takedown. Taobao.com, China's leading B2C website, announced on Monday that it will launch a campaign to stop online piracy and counterfeiting. The move comes after the site was labelled by USTR as a "notorious market". Last year, taobao.com deleted more than 5.7 million products involved in copyright infringement. Taobao will set up a special team responsible for checking for piracy and counterfeiting.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
continue reading ...
Some interesting online IPR news IP Komodo has spotted:
Chinese authors accuse Baidu, China's biggest search engine of copyright violations, by its free online excerpts of unauthorized stories and books. On March 15, World Consumer Rights Day, more than 40 writers said in an open letter that Baidu stole their work and infringed their copyrights. Fang Zhouzi, (well-known for exposing academic fraud), told Xinhua that he could find almost all of his work in Baidu's online library. A welcome change to the parade of foreign complainants, IP Komodo thinks.
The State Level AIC is about to issue new regulations on internet IPR infringement aimed particularly at at tackling online piracy and counterfeiting. Evidence and jurisdiction will be covered, according to the vice Minister who announced it at the close of the National Peoples Congress session on Monday.
ISP takedown. Taobao.com, China's leading B2C website, announced on Monday that it will launch a campaign to stop online piracy and counterfeiting. The move comes after the site was labelled by USTR as a "notorious market". Last year, taobao.com deleted more than 5.7 million products involved in copyright infringement. Taobao will set up a special team responsible for checking for piracy and counterfeiting.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
Monday, March 14, 2011
Beijing's Silk Market
IP Komodo’s friend Tim Smith of Rouse was curious to know what was happening at the famous Beijing Silk Market. He asked his intern Dominic to take a look and here is what they found. Large public notices appear around the market issued by the Beijing Administration for Industry and Commerce, concerning counterfeit goods. The notices (in Chinese only) state that any merchants in Silk Street caught selling any items bearing any of a finite list of famous foreign brands (Prada, Chanel, Burberry, Givenchy, Boss, Hermes, Miu Miu, North Face etc.) would be subject to administrative penalties, as all such articles would be counterfeit. Further, the management of the Silk Street shopping plaza would, if it was shown to have knowingly permitted the sale of any such goods, be subject to administrative measures and criminal punishment. These are all brands which we believe were involved in civil litigation against the Silk Market management.
There are also large red banners in Chinese and English reading "protect intellectual property rights - be law-abiding vendors" and "embrace national brand - respect intellectual property right". There were red sign boards displayed above the aisles every few metres or so in English advising customers that if they had any concerns with the merchandise they had purchased they could contact the customer service desk, call a telephone hotline or send the details of their complaint to a dedicated email address.
But a look around revealed many articles from jackets and shirts to belts and watches bearing brands such as D&G, Giorgio Armani, Adidas, Nike, Ralph Lauren and Abercrombie, all on unabashed display. Few of the brands listed in the notice, however, were seen. Coincidentally these all appear to be companies which were plaintiffs in civil court actions against the market in recent years. The result of the cases is that those brands who went to court appear to have succeeded in proving secondary liability against the landlord, so he ensures their products are not sold there. But those who have not litigated do not appear to be in that position. Further pending litigation is seeking to widen the landlord's liability further.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
The Lizard's weekly news roundup
Some of the more interesting news stories IP Komodo has spotted this week:
CNN reports on the growth in counterfeit wine trade in China. Destruction of the bottles is now common practice at the auction houses, for original fine wine bottles are not reused. Label errors are a common giveaway, but recorked fine wines (putting a cheaper 85 Lafite Rothschild into an 82 bottle is a high end way to make fakes). Now HK Customs have seized cheaper wines like Mouton Rothschild and Benfolds (Penfolds fakes) have been seen in China, following the rapid market growth. Read here.
AIC stats Here is a wonderful PRC enforcement statistic from SIPO. During a recent enforcement the campaign, AICs mobilized 1.595 million law enforcement officer/times to examine 3.877 million business owners, and 2,955 illicit dens were banned. Always important to focus on the means not the end…
The USTR report on notorious markets that fingers China's top search engine, Baidu and e-commerce giant Taobao as "notorious markets" for counterfeit and pirated goods is causing consternation in China. Various commentators have come out in defence of the sites, which are of course legitimate business sites as well as used by infringers, arguing that the US is politicizing the issue as regards China, when Ebay has the same problems.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
continue reading ...
CNN reports on the growth in counterfeit wine trade in China. Destruction of the bottles is now common practice at the auction houses, for original fine wine bottles are not reused. Label errors are a common giveaway, but recorked fine wines (putting a cheaper 85 Lafite Rothschild into an 82 bottle is a high end way to make fakes). Now HK Customs have seized cheaper wines like Mouton Rothschild and Benfolds (Penfolds fakes) have been seen in China, following the rapid market growth. Read here.
AIC stats Here is a wonderful PRC enforcement statistic from SIPO. During a recent enforcement the campaign, AICs mobilized 1.595 million law enforcement officer/times to examine 3.877 million business owners, and 2,955 illicit dens were banned. Always important to focus on the means not the end…
The USTR report on notorious markets that fingers China's top search engine, Baidu and e-commerce giant Taobao as "notorious markets" for counterfeit and pirated goods is causing consternation in China. Various commentators have come out in defence of the sites, which are of course legitimate business sites as well as used by infringers, arguing that the US is politicizing the issue as regards China, when Ebay has the same problems.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
Friday, March 04, 2011
The lizard's weekly China news roundup
IP Komodo hears righteous indignation expressed by bosses at Beijing's famous Silk Market on Wednesday at a United States trade report that accuses the mall of being "notorious" for fake goods. A Ms Hu stated to the press “I don't care about what any other media is saying about (the Silk Market). We're doing our best to fight against fake goods." 80 percent of Silk Market patrons are tourists. "The guilt for fake goods is shared between the buyer and the seller," she added. During a crackdown in October 2009, authorities found copies of Gucci, Coach and Adidas ready available and the raid led to the arrest of the mall's then-manager Wang Zili, who was charged with allowing the sale of fake goods and taking bribes. IP Komodo would like to hear from anyone who has visited the market in 2011.
Meanwhile in Guangzhou the sale of counterfeit products thrives: China-Africa Commercial Plaza has been required to close after authorities investigated and seized more than 7,600 products, including watches, garments, bags, sneakers, perfumes, cell phones, notebook computers and small household appliances - fake brand names included Rolex, Rado, Citizen, Swatch, LV, Gucci, Hugo Boss, Dior, Polo, Nokia, Sony, Burberry and Apple. Investigators looked into the sales of the counterfeit products on Feb 20 and 21. Fourteen stores in the plaza were believed to have infringed IPRs.
China's food and drug watchdog Tuesday vowed a "ruthless" crackdown on the production and sales of substandard health foods and cosmetics this year. Bian Zhenjia, deputy director of the State Food and Drug Administration said at a national conference that despite stepped-up supervision on the sector last year, the country's health food and cosmetics markets still faced many quality problems. IP Komodo notes a similar problem in his home in Indonesia where echoing the problem in China a couple of years back, a tainted milk scandal has Indonesian consumers panicking over food safety.
WIPO will be delighted at this: Chinese lawmakers on Wednesday began reviewing a revised draft law on the country's intangible cultural heritage (or to give it an acronym ICH). The draft law was submitted to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, for its third reading. This is the first attempt by China to enact a law that safeguards heritage of historical, literary, artistic or scientific value. IP Komodo senses endless seminar opportunities.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
Meanwhile in Guangzhou the sale of counterfeit products thrives: China-Africa Commercial Plaza has been required to close after authorities investigated and seized more than 7,600 products, including watches, garments, bags, sneakers, perfumes, cell phones, notebook computers and small household appliances - fake brand names included Rolex, Rado, Citizen, Swatch, LV, Gucci, Hugo Boss, Dior, Polo, Nokia, Sony, Burberry and Apple. Investigators looked into the sales of the counterfeit products on Feb 20 and 21. Fourteen stores in the plaza were believed to have infringed IPRs.
China's food and drug watchdog Tuesday vowed a "ruthless" crackdown on the production and sales of substandard health foods and cosmetics this year. Bian Zhenjia, deputy director of the State Food and Drug Administration said at a national conference that despite stepped-up supervision on the sector last year, the country's health food and cosmetics markets still faced many quality problems. IP Komodo notes a similar problem in his home in Indonesia where echoing the problem in China a couple of years back, a tainted milk scandal has Indonesian consumers panicking over food safety.
WIPO will be delighted at this: Chinese lawmakers on Wednesday began reviewing a revised draft law on the country's intangible cultural heritage (or to give it an acronym ICH). The draft law was submitted to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, for its third reading. This is the first attempt by China to enact a law that safeguards heritage of historical, literary, artistic or scientific value. IP Komodo senses endless seminar opportunities.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
Wednesday, March 02, 2011
IP Komodo v IP Dragon
The Komodo dragon or varanus komodoensis is the world’s largest lizard and lives on the island of Komodo in Indonesia. One particular Komodo has a keen interest in Intellectual Property (see IP Komodo’s blog at http://ipkomododragon.blogspot.com/). IP Komodo is spending some time prowling around China in March and by dint of being the biggest and scariest lizard on the block, has tossed the IP Dragon out and is occupying his blog.
Other China/Indonesia connections:
- a very substantial Chinese Indonesian population estimated at 3% of the population. Wikpedia says "Broadly speaking, there were three waves of immigration of ethnic Chinese to Southeast Asia in general and Indonesia in particular. The first wave was spurred by trading activities dating back to the time of Zheng He's voyage in the early 15th century, the second wave around the time of the Opium War, and the third wave around the first half of the 20th century where the Warlord era, Second Sino-Japanese War and Chinese Civil War took place." Today Chinese Indonesians are many of the leading businesses in Indonesia, many having built connections back to China.
- in 1293 the Mongol Chinese emperor Kublai Khan sent a massive fleet to invade Indonesia after the Javanese king cut off an emissary's ear. By the time the fleet arrive the Javanese king had died, and a renegade prince persuaded the Mongol army to fight and depose the king's successor. The duplicitous renegade prince then turned his own troops on the now exhausted-from-fighting Chinese army and sent them packing back to China, before taking the Javanese crown for himself!
IP Komodo is scouring China for interesting IP news to compare with the other Asian countries where he has devoured animals, people and IP news.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
continue reading ...
Other China/Indonesia connections:- a very substantial Chinese Indonesian population estimated at 3% of the population. Wikpedia says "Broadly speaking, there were three waves of immigration of ethnic Chinese to Southeast Asia in general and Indonesia in particular. The first wave was spurred by trading activities dating back to the time of Zheng He's voyage in the early 15th century, the second wave around the time of the Opium War, and the third wave around the first half of the 20th century where the Warlord era, Second Sino-Japanese War and Chinese Civil War took place." Today Chinese Indonesians are many of the leading businesses in Indonesia, many having built connections back to China.
- in 1293 the Mongol Chinese emperor Kublai Khan sent a massive fleet to invade Indonesia after the Javanese king cut off an emissary's ear. By the time the fleet arrive the Javanese king had died, and a renegade prince persuaded the Mongol army to fight and depose the king's successor. The duplicitous renegade prince then turned his own troops on the now exhausted-from-fighting Chinese army and sent them packing back to China, before taking the Javanese crown for himself!
IP Komodo is scouring China for interesting IP news to compare with the other Asian countries where he has devoured animals, people and IP news.
Guest post by IP Komodo Dragon
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