Sector: Consumer Goods

The Indonesian Supreme Court has finally brought an end to a lengthy dispute over one of the most well-known Indonesian cigarette brands. GUDANG GARAM is a famous clove cigarette brand belonging to Gudang Garam Tbk, a large public listed company.

16 September 2016

The long-awaited decision of a World Trade Organisation panel on Australia’s decision to enforce standardised packaging on tobacco products has been ‘imminent’ for years. While the wait continues, governments across multiple continents – including Africa, Asia and Europe – are introducing plain packaging legislation at an increasingly swift rate. Despite this, the anti-plain packaging lobby has not given up yet

06 September 2016

Ground-breaking decisions have made merchandising rights a useful tool in the battle against bad-faith trademarks

01 September 2016

The international rules on ambush marketing and promotional activities surrounding sports events present a complex maze for counsel to navigate

01 September 2016

Apple has been revealed as owning the world’s most valuable brand portfolio, despite this value predominately residing in one master brand. By contrast, drawing on 539 individual brands, Nestlé is sitting on a $66.6 billion portfolio. The latest top 100 list therefore illustrates the benefits of both the master and multi-brand approaches to consumer engagement. Both, though, come with downsides.

30 August 2016

The General Court has affirmed a decision of the EUIPO Second Board of Appeal that a 3D mark of a toothbrush was only a variant of a generally used and recognised shape of a toothbrush, and thus could not benefit from registration under the EU Trademark Regulation.

28 July 2016

A US Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ruling that refused a trademark due to its association with cannabis products could have wide implications for the fledgling state-legal cannabis industry in the United States. One expert tells us there is a “frightening possibility” the ruling may stop any major brand owner considering licensing their marks for use on legal cannabis products – and that, overall, the IP situation for the industry is worse today than a year ago.

22 July 2016

The most recent edition of the JPO’s annual Status Report indicates that 2015 was a bumper year for trademark filings in Japan. The JPO received 147,283 applications during the year, representing a year-on-year increase of 18.4%. Trademark registrations themselves, on the other hand, were slightly down, from 99,896 in 2014 to 98,085 in 2015.

01 July 2016

01 July 2016

In <i>Philip Morris Brands SARL v Secretary of State for Health</i> the European Court of Justice considered a request from the High Court of England and Wales for a preliminary ruling on various questions relating to the validity of the EU Tobacco Products Directive.

17 June 2016