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What is inside the bottle?
Consumers have the right to know what they swallow, says trade mark attorney Marilyn Krige, partner at Adams & Adams, leading attorneys in intellectual property law. Welcoming the regulations to govern the bottled water industry passed by the Department of Health recently, Krige says any industry that generates some R1,5 billion every year and supplies goods that people consume, should state clearly what it is offering. |
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Cyber squatters: 0 Brand owners: 1
The very first case in which a cyber squatter was ordered to transfer a .co.za domain name to a South African brand owner has just been handed down. The complainant was Telkom SA Limited. The domain name was registered on 4 September 2006, shortly after the announcement by Telkom Media (Pty) Limited, a subsidiary of Telkom SA Limited that it intended to apply for a satellite television subscription broadcasting licence from the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa. This announcement received wide media attention at the time. |
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Insurance needed against insurance patents
The question of patents for non-technical subject matter is once again hitting the headlines in the USA. Bancorp Services LLC is sueing Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. for infringing a patent for a system that administers and tracks the values of insurance policies in separate accounts (U.S. Patent No. 7,249,037). Bancorp filed suit the same day that the patent issued. |
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BMW AG succeeds against replacement parts supplier
Commercial Auto Glass (Pty) Limited has been unsuccessful in its appeal against a judgment of the Transvaal Provincial Division of the High Court interdicting it from infringing the registered trade marks BMW, BM and 3-SERIES, and the unregistered well-known trade marks E30, E36 and E46, of BMW AG. |
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Advanced ADR Workshop (3 - 4 September 2007)
Advanced ADR workshop to be presented by speakers from Nominet UK and WIPO over 2 days in Sandton, Johannesburg. |
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Health Warnings will soon be required on Alcoholic Beverages
Consumers have become accustomed to the health warnings found on cigarettes and other tobacco products. Similar health warnings will soon have to be placed on alcoholic beverages. |
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Best Global Brands Survey: 53% associated with Adams & Adams
Adams & Adams is proud to be associated with 53 of the top 100 brands worldwide, as identified in the Recent Best Global Brands Survey, conducted by Interbrand. The Interbrand rankings for 2007 are as follows: |
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Partner at Adams & Adams wins Business Achievers Award
Marilyn Krige, partner at Adams & Adams, leading attorneys in intellectual property law, is a top women business achiever. |
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Lip-smacking ruling by ASA Final Appeal Committee
On 16 July 2007 the Final Appeal Committee of the Advertising Standards Authority handed down a lip-smacking ruling in the matter between Carma Laboratories Inc. (the Complainant) and Avid Brands SA (Pty) Ltd (the Respondent) which makes it clear that South African businesses should be wary of copying the advertising of internationally sold products. |
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Complaints in the .co.za name space - no April fools day joke
Cybersquatting as such, is not uncommon in South Africa. However, until very recently, anybody who wanted to object to a domain name in the .co.za name space, had no option but to institute proceedings in the High Court. |
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Domain names
In terms of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act, Act no. 25 of 2002, the Minister of Communications promulgated Alternative Dispute Resolution regulations in November 2006. The regulations, which have now come into force, relate only to domain names registered in the second level country code domain, .co.za. |
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26 April -World Intellectual Property Day
South Africans complain about the level of crime in the country but merrily "rob" creators and artists of their income by purchasing fake or pirated goods sold by organised crime syndicates, says Alan Smith, Chairman of Adams & Adams, leading attorney in intellectual property law. |
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Nigeria Service Marks - Update
Earlier this month we reported that the Nigerian Minister of Commerce had issued a notice in terms of which it had allegedly become possible to register service marks in that country. |
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New labelling requirements for textile goods
As from 14 April 2007, new labelling requirements will come into effect in South Africa which requires textile goods, from carpeting through to clothing and footwear to have applied to them in a conspicuous and legible manner in a permanent way, an indication of the country from which the products originated. |
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Nigeria - Introduction of service marks
In an unprecedented move, the Nigerian Federal Minister of Commerce has unilaterally approved the introduction of service mark registrations. |
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The firm practises directly in several Southern African countries and through long-established associates in others.
