Syria - legalisation of documents

The current conflict in Syria is devastating for the people of that country. Despite the conflict the Trade Mark Office still functions if slightly (intentionally?) oblivious to the consequences. A simple example is that the Trade Mark Office continues to require documents to be legalised despite Syrian Embassies and Consulates being closed in many countries (the US, UK, and Canada included).

Happy news reaches this part of the Empty Quarter of a possible solution. Documents can be legalised to the Lebanese Consulate in the country of execution and then sent to Lebanon where they can be legalised to the Syrian Consulate in Lebanon and from there they can be sent to Syria for use. While slightly convoluted this is, at least, a solution.

South Korea to dispatch patent examiners to UAE for cooperation in IPR sector

News (here) that the Patent Office in the UAE is to receive support in the form of five examiners from the Patent Office in South Korea. The press release dated 30 April 2014 reads:

SEOUL, April 30 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will dispatch patent examiners to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in order to beef up cooperation in the area of intellectual property rights (IPR), the finance ministry said Wednesday.

The agreement was made during discussions between the two countries at a committee meeting in Seoul. The ministerial meeting, the fourth of its kind, is a major channel for cooperation between the two countries.

The UAE has asked South Korea for assistance as it struggles with insufficient infrastructure to deal with patent applications there, the ministry said.

South Korea will send five patent examiners to the UAE, who will help evaluate the applications, the ministry said.

The two countries also discussed cooperation in construction, infrastructure and such high value added sectors as health, welfare and finance, the ministry added.

Libya - Trade Mark Office search delays

News from good friends Saba & Co that trade mark search results are currently taking anywhere between 7 days and a month to be returned by the Trade Mark Office.

UAE - WCO and UAE Federal Customs launch IPM Mobile

News from the World Customs Organisation that the Federal Customs Authority of the UAE has launched the 'IPM Mobile' application. Original announcement here and reproduced here:

The World Customs Organization (WCO), in cooperation with the Federal Customs Authority of the United Arab Emirates (FCA), has officially launched the ‘IPM Mobile’ application, enabling Customs officers equipped with a mobile device to access IPM immediately when faced with a suspicious product.

Launched in 2010, the WCO’s online anti-counterfeiting tool IPM provides a communication hub between Customs officers on the ground and the private sector by allowing them to exchange crucial information in real-time in order to intercept counterfeit goods.

With the launch of the mobile application, field Customs officers can now access IPM via their mobile devices and retrieve all relevant information contained in the database. Several new features have been added to the mobile version such as the possibility to send or receive alerts regarding possible shipment of counterfeit goods, and, when faced with suspicious merchandise, Customs officers can contact right holders immediately and upload photos of the products in question.

This new version also allows using mobile devices to scan industry standard GS1 barcodes found on millions of products, enabling to search the products database more quickly. The unique product identifier embedded in the GS1 bar code facilitates access to multiple databases providing trusted sources of product information.

Scanning the barcodes enables automatic connection to any authentication services linked to the product controlled. This new feature is known as IPM Connected - a global network of security features providers (SFP) interfaced with IPM.

In cooperation with the FCA and the private sector, the WCO unveiled the IPM Mobile programme during a two-day workshop held in Dubai on 16-17 April. During this workshop, Customs officers tested the tool on a number of counterfeit and genuine products and were trained to make informed decision with the information contained in the IPM database.

"Faced with the growing trade in counterfeit goods, the WCO and its Members are determined to develop the most efficient tools to fight this menace. Safeguarding the health and safety of consumers across the globe is one of the WCO’s priorities, and IPM’s mobile version is a significant step forward" said WCO Secretary General, Kunio Mikuriya.

Secretary General Mikuriya added, "Working with the UAE on this pilot phase was an obvious choice given our previous successful cooperation to launch the PC version back in April 2012. The WCO appreciates the UAE’s ongoing efforts to tackle the illicit trade of counterfeit and pirated goods."

The UAE is the first country to use the IPM Mobile application and will contribute to developing the tool before the official worldwide launch in June 2014 during the WCO’s General Council Meeting.

"The UAE is keen to support plans for facilitating trade and fighting counterfeit according to the established principles of the federation state including the protection of IPRs and fighting piracy and counterfeiting as they have serious economic and social impacts that may jeopardize the security of the society, consumer and producer altogether" said Khalid Al Bustani, Acting Director General of the Federal Customs Authority.

"The application is launched as a part of fulfilling the requirements of the smart government initiative announced last year by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum by providing governmental services on mobiles", continued Al Bustani.

For more information: ipmcommunication@wcoomd.org

WIPO - Workshop in Trademark Law and Examination

An item on the ever useful and interesting Afro-IP blog alerted this part of the Empty Quarter to the WIPO Techincal Assitance Database (here) and from there to an item (here) about a Workshop in Trademark Law and Examination hosted in Korea. "The objectives of the Workshop shall be to: (i) enhance the knowledge of trademark examiners of the principles of trademark law and trademark examination procedures; (ii) increase their skills in actual examination of trademark applications; and (iii) provide an opportunity to exchange views on issues related to the Madrid System." 

The workshop was attended by representatives from Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iran. This part of the Empty Quarter hopes they brought back and shared much useful learning.

Egypt - increase in trade mark and design fees

News from good friends Abdelhadi - Intellectual Property in Egypt of an increase in official fees for trade mark and design matters. The report does not appear on their website. The translation (for which this part of the Empty Quarter is very grateful) of the decree issued by the Minister of Trade and Supply provided by Abdelhadi reads:

Circular No. (1) of 2014 dated 19/3/2014
After perusal of:
Decree of Minister of Supply and Internal Trade No. 95 of 2014 dated 13/3/2014 regarding
collection of fees against some services provided by the Central Administration of Trade
Marks and Industrial Designs within the framework of cost against services rendered
principle,
For the good of work and requisites:
Decided
First:
The Central Administration of Trade Marks and Industrial Designs should collect the
following fees against the services provided by the Administration as follows:
Egyptian Pounds 250 ( Two Hundred & Fifty) for each session of Trade Mark opposition.
Egyptian Pounds 250 (Two Hundred & Fifty) for each session of Industrial Design session.
Egyptian Pounds 200 (Two Hundred) for an extract of a Trade Mark application.
Egyptian Pounds 200 (Two Hundred) for an extract of an Industrial Design application.
Egyptian Pounds 200 (Two Hundred) for a Trade Mark search application.
Egyptian Pounds 200 (Two Hundred) for an Industrial Design search application.
Egyptian Pounds 200 (Two Hundred) for an Extract of a Trade Mark status report.
Egyptian Pounds 200 (Two Hundred) for an Industrial Design status report.
Second:
To be executed as of 1/4/2014
Issued 19 March 2014.
Signed
Deputy Chief
Trade Administration

Bahrain - approves the GCC Trade Mark law

News from good friends Saba & Co that Bahrain has approved the GCC Trade Mark law.  The article on the Saba & Co website can be found here. 

This part of Empty Quarter has not followed the progress of the GCC Trade Mark law but cant help wondering whether any of the GCC Trade Mark Offices will apply the unified reguslations without local implementing regulations which could take some many years to be implemented.

UAE - Trade Mark Office requires Power of Attorney at time of filing from today

Following an announcement on 30 March 2014, which was amended on 31 March 2014, today, 1 May 2014, marks a new era at the Trade Mark Office in the United Arab Emirates. From today a Power of Attorney (fully legalised) is required at the time of:

- filing a trade mark application, and
- filing an opposition against a trade mark application.

This part of the Empty Quarter regrets this decision by the Trade Mark Office. The United Arab Emirates requires Powers of Attorney (and indeed all other documents from overseas) to be legalised in the country where the Power is executed and then again by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the UAE. This takes considerable time (and cost). To require these documents at the time of filing places an unnecessary burden on the rights holder.