Category: intellectual property

Microsoft to sue Comet over ‘fake’ Windows discs – The Guardian

Posted January 5th, 2012 in consumer protection, counterfeiting, intellectual property, news by sally

“Microsoft is to sue UK electronics retailer Comet for making tens of thousands of allegedly unauthorised CDs for its Windows operating system and selling them to customers. The US computing giant has issued proceedings against Comet for allegedly creating more than 94,000 counterfeit ‘recovery discs’ for its Windows Vista and Windows XP operating systems and selling them to customers.”

Full story

The Guardian, 4th January 2012

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Realchemie Nederland BV v Bayer CropScience AG (Case C-406/09) – WLR Daily

Posted December 7th, 2011 in conflict of laws, EC law, intellectual property, law reports, news by sally

Realchemie Nederland BV v Bayer CropScience AG (Case C-406/09); [2011] WLR (D) 350

“Council Regulation (EC) No 44/2001 of 22 December 2000 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters (OJ 2001 L 12, p1) applied to the recognition and enforcement of a decision of a court or tribunal that contained an order to pay a fine in order to ensure compliance with a judgment given in a civil and commercial matter. The costs relating to an exequatur (enforcement) procedure brought in one member state, in the course of which the recognition and enforcement was sought of a judgment given in another member state in proceedings seeking to enforce an intellectual property right, fell within article 14 of Parliament and Council Directive 2004/48/EC of 29 April 2004 on the enforcement of intellectual property rights (OJ 2004 L 157, p 45).”

WLR Daily, 18th December 2011

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Courts cannot force ISPs into broad filtering and monitoring for copyright-infringing traffic, ECJ rules – OUT-LAW.com

Posted November 24th, 2011 in data protection, EC law, intellectual property, internet, news, privacy by sally

“Court injunctions that force internet service providers (ISPs) to filter and monitor user traffic in order to prevent illegal file-sharing are contrary to EU law and fundamental rights, the European Court of Justice (ECJ) has said.”

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 24th November 2011

Source: www.out-law.com

Feasibility study into digital copyright exchange launched – OUT-LAW.com

Posted November 24th, 2011 in copyright, intellectual property, internet, news, reports by sally

“A report into how a new digital copyright exchange (DCE) could work will be submitted to the Government before Parliament breaks up for summer next year, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) has said.”

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 23rd November 2011

Source: www.out-law.com

Trade body says ECJ ruling could undermine private copying law reforms – OUT-LAW.com

Posted November 15th, 2011 in compensation, copyright, EC law, intellectual property, news by sally

“UK copyright reform could be ‘undermined’ if the European Court of Justice (ECJ) rules that copyright levies must still be charged when rights holders have given their permission for work to be copied, an IT trade association has said.”

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 14th November 2011

Source: www.out-law.com

BT ordered to block Newzbin2 filesharing site within 14 days – The Guardian

Posted October 27th, 2011 in copyright, intellectual property, internet, news, telecommunications by sally

“BT has been given 14 days to block access to a website accused of promoting illegal filesharing ‘on a grand scale’ by Hollywood studios, in the first high court ruling of its kind under UK copyright law.”

Full story

The Guardian, 26th October 2011

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

High Court rules computer simulations can obtain patent protection – OUT-LAW.com

Posted October 11th, 2011 in intellectual property, inventions, judgments, news, patents by sally

“Computer simulations of designs are not ‘unpatentable’ mental acts, the High Court has ruled.”

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 11th October 2011

Source: www.out-law.com

Premier League games can be shown on foreign decoders – BBC News

Posted October 4th, 2011 in EC law, intellectual property, licensed premises, licensing, media, news, sport by sally

“A pub landlady has won the latest stage of her fight to air Premier League games using a foreign TV decoder. Karen Murphy had to pay nearly £8,000 in fines and costs for using a cheaper Greek decoder in her Portsmouth pub to bypass controls over match screening. But she took her case to the European Court of Justice. The ECJ now says national laws which prohibit the import, sale or use of foreign decoder cards are contrary to the freedom to provide services.”

Full story

BBC News, 4th October 2011

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

BBC Worldwide to sue Silvio Berlusconi’s TV network – BBC News

Posted September 22nd, 2011 in BBC, intellectual property, media, news, plagiarism by sally

“BBC Worldwide is suing an Italian television network owned by Silvio Berlusconi over claims that it has copied Strictly Come Dancing.”

Full story

BBC News, 21st September 2011

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

New principles agreed for out-of-print book licensing – OUT-LAW.com

Posted September 22nd, 2011 in EC law, intellectual property, licensing, news, publishing by sally

“The European Commission has created the basis for the digitising and distribution by libraries of out of print books that are still protected by copyright, it has said.”

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 21st September 2011

Source: www.out-law.com

Jeremy Hunt urges web firms to join anti-piracy drive – BBC News

Posted September 15th, 2011 in copyright, intellectual property, internet, legislation, news by sally

“UK Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt has delivered a hard-hitting speech, calling on net firms, advertisers and credit card companies to cut ties with websites that link to unlawful content.”

Full story

BBC News, 14th September 2011

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Bucks Fizz judge makes his mind up over ownership of name – The Guardian

Posted August 25th, 2011 in intellectual property, news, trade marks by sally

“The UK intellectual property office has been making its mind up which members of Bucks Fizz, the pop group which won the 1981 Eurovision song contest, are eligible to claim the name as their own.”

Full story

The Guardian, 24th August 2011

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

IPO is training prosecutors on IP crime – OUT-LAW.com

Posted August 24th, 2011 in counterfeiting, Crown Prosecution Service, intellectual property, news by sally

“Crown prosecutors are receiving special training from intellectual property experts on how to construct legal cases against counterfeiters and pirates, the Intellectual Property Office (IPO) has said.”

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 24th August 2011

Source: www.out-law.com

Government broadly backs Hargreaves recommendations to change IP frameworks – OUT-LAW.com

Posted August 4th, 2011 in copyright, intellectual property, news, reports by sally

“The UK’s intellectual property (IP) laws sometimes hamper business growth, the Government has said.”

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 3rd August 2011

Source: www.out-law.com

High court forces BT to block file-sharing website – The Guardian

Posted July 28th, 2011 in copyright, intellectual property, internet, news by sally

“Hollywood film studios won a landmark UK high court ruling on Thursday forcing BT to block access to an illegal file-sharing website accused of operating ‘on a grand scale’.”

Full story

The Guardian, 28th July 2011

Source: www.guardian.co.uk

Atrium Medical Corpn and another v DSB Invest Holding SA – WLR Daily

Posted June 23rd, 2011 in intellectual property, law reports, patents, rights of audience, trials by sally

Atrium Medical Corpn and another v DSB Invest Holding SA [2011] EWHC 74 (Pat); [2011] WLR (D) 202

“High Court proceedings for declarations as to whether a product incorporated technical information, thus ultimately resulting in the determination of whether royalties were due, fell within the definition of ‘intellectual property litigation’ in regulation 3 of the Chartered Institute of Patent Agents Higher Courts Qualification Regulations 2007 and therefore a patent attorney litigator was an ‘authorised person’ entitled to conduct the litigation and to exercise rights of audience in relation thereto.”

WLR Daily, 21st June 2011

Source: www.iclr.co.uk

Please note that once a case has been fully reported in one of the ICLR series the corresponding WLR Daily summary is removed.

Domain names can be registered with almost any suffix from next year, ICANN says – OUT-LAW.com

Posted June 21st, 2011 in domain names, intellectual property, internet, news by sally

“Businesses will be able to register website domain names with almost any ending and in any language from next year under plans approved by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN).”

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 20th June 2011

Source: www.out-law.com

Digital Opportunity: A review of Intellectual Property and Growth – Report by Ian Hargreaves

Posted May 19th, 2011 in copyright, intellectual property, internet, patents, reports by sally

“In November 2010 the Prime Minister David Cameron announced an independent review of how the Intellectual Property framework supports growth and innovation. Chaired by Professor Ian Hargreaves and assisted by a panel of experts, the review reported to Government in May 2011. The Review makes 10 recommendations designed to ensure that the UK has an IP framework best suited to supporting innovation and promoting economic growth in the digital age.”

Full report

Intellectual Property Office, 18th May 2011

Source: www.ipo.gov.uk

Parliamentary committee suspends intellectual property rights inquiry – OUT-LAW.com

Posted May 3rd, 2011 in inquiries, intellectual property, internet, legislation, news by sally

“A parliamentary committee has dropped its inquiry into the Digital Economy Act (DEA) and whether it is the right mechanism to protect copyright on the internet.”

Full story

OUT-LAW.com, 3rd May 2011

Source: www.out-law.com

David Cameron warned over IP law change by TV industry – The Guardian

Posted April 20th, 2011 in intellectual property, media, news by sally

“The UK’s biggest commercial broadcasters have joined forces to warn David Cameron against a wholesale relaxation of intellectual property (IP) laws, saying it could cripple the country’s £4bn audiovisual sector.”

Full story

The Guardian, 19th April 2011

Source: www.guardian.co.uk