Tag Archives: Business

IP Considerations in Fashion, Design and Lifestyle industry in South-East Asia

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fashion2In today’s blog post we are discussing IP protection in fashion, design and lifestyle sector, as this sector is offering more and more business opportunities to  European SMEs in South-East Asia. You’ll learn how to protect your brand in South-East Asia as well as how to protect your design and other creative works.  

The fashion, design and lifestyle sector is a significant driver in South-East Asia’s creative economy. The global fashion industry has traditionally been one of the most lucrative industries, with sales generated in the trillions globally. This is especially true in South-East Asia, where consumers gravitate towards fashion and do not shy away from paying top dollar for luxury fashion products. Singapore, for instance, holds a 2% share of the world apparel market and their fashion industry generates sales of USD3.6 billion[1] (approx. EUR3.1 billion). In Indonesia, it contributed about USD49.3 trillion (approx. EUR42.8 trillion) to the GDP, with the fashion industry alone accounting for 28% of total earnings in the creative economy[2].

Among the South-East Asian countries, the design and lifestyle industry is classified as emerging industries especially in Singapore where, an ad hoc organization, the Design Singapore Council, was established in 2003 to help develop the nation’s design sector, following the Economic Review Committee’s report which identified the creative industry as one of the three new sectors for economic growth of the country.  Similarly, the Thai government is making investments to further strengthen its fashion industry, as for example it is actively supporting the “Bangkok Fashion City” project launched in February 2004, which aims to turn Bangkok into a fashion hub in the South East Asia region and into a world fashion centre.[3]

Given the potential for growth in the fashion, design and lifestyle economy in the South-East Asia region, there is tremendous value in understanding how SMEs can protect their intellectual property in the region. Even though, IP laws and regulations have been considerably improved in most South-East Asian Countries, counterfeiting and other IP violations are still commonplace in the region and thus a comprehensive IP strategy is needed before starting business in the fashion and lifestyle industry in South-East Asia. Continue reading “IP Considerations in Fashion, Design and Lifestyle industry in South-East Asia” »

The CPTPP – What to Expect?

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denver-business-law-firm-intellectual-propertyToday’s blog post has been kindly drafted for us by the South-East Asia IPR SME Helpdesk external expert Mr. Manh Hung Tran from BMVN International LLC, a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International. In his article, Mr. Manh Hung Tran discusses what signing the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership means to its signatories in terms of IPR protection. 

At the November 2017 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Da Nang, Vietnam, the 11 countries remaining in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) took a significant step forward to finalize a new agreement now referred to as the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).

In the absence of a key player – the United States – this new cross-border deal, the CPTPP is reported to have largely incorporated the TPP on the one hand but “suspended” certain intellectual property provisions on the other hand, in hopes of reviving them when the United States re-joins the agreement at some point in the future. Thus, although the final text has not been published, it is highly likely that the CPTPP has ceased the effect of many IP-related and/or drug-specific articles that the United States rigorously promoted when the TPP was being negotiated.

In light of the above, we think that the following important issues in Chapter 18 of the TPP, which concerns intellectual property, may have been included in the list of suspended provisions of the CPTPP. Continue reading “The CPTPP – What to Expect?” »

Marking Your Territory: Choosing a Trade Mark in China

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trademarkChoosing a Chinese equivalent for your brand name can oftentimes be a challenging task.  In today’s blog post we’re taking a closer look at what you need to know when choosing your trade mark in China.  We are using the famous New Balance case to offer some tips on how to choose a good trade mark in China. 

In one of the most famous trade mark infringement case, New Balance Trading (China) – the Chinese affiliate of US sports footwear brand, New Balance – was ordered by a Guangzhou court to pay RMB98 million in compensation (equivalent to approximately EUR14.3 million), and to publicly apologise to Chinese businessman, Mr Yuelin Zhou, for trademark infringement. The trade mark in question was “新百伦”, or “Xin Bai Lun”, a Chinese transliteration of “New Balance”. This case serves as a sharp reminder of how vital it is for foreign brands to register a Chinese trade mark in China, and how cutting corners may result in high financial penalties later down the line. This article takes a look at how to best choose a Chiniese name for your brand when doing business in China.

Chinese consumer culture: why choose a Chinese name?

China possesses one third of the world’s consumers and is the largest market for luxury goods in the world. Between 2010 and 2014, European Union (EU) imports to China grew by around 12% on average annually.

Taking time to carefully consider a Chinese trade mark when importing a brand to China is important for several reasons. Firstly, because foreign brands or company names are often difficult to pronounce – or carry different meanings – in Chinese. If a company fails to provide its own Chinese name or trade mark, Chinese consumers will choose their own. Secondly, in a country where each character holds its own distinctive meaning, the characters used in a foreign branded trade mark, along with the sound, tone and look of Chinese characters, can significantly impact a brand’s reputation. Continue reading “Marking Your Territory: Choosing a Trade Mark in China” »

IP Protection Strategies for European SMEs Active in the Philippines’ Water Management Sector

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200As water management is becoming an ever more pressing issue for the Philippines, there are also more opportunities for European SMEs to find promising business opportunities in the Philippines’ water management sector, especially  as European top-notch technology is highly sought after. With every opportunity also comes a risk, especially as counterfeiting and other IP violations are still commonplace in the Philippines. In today’s blog post we are taking a closer look at how European SMEs, wishing to do business in the Philippines’  water management sector, can best protect their IP. 

For a country surrounded by the ocean, it comes as no surprise that water is a priority sector in the Philippines. A large majority of its 7,000 islands directly deals with water management challenges: while some islands have water-sources still left unexplored, others are actively searching for solutions in light of a decreased water-quality. The quality of the Pasig River flowing through Manila is notorious even for international standards, especially as progress to revive its water-quality has been slow and without considerable success. This is further enhanced in light of ongoing trends related to climate change, where a combination of rising sea-levels and an ever-present risk for natural disasters – like 2013’s Super Typhoon Haiyan – continuously shapes how people live and engage with water.

The range of solutions needed in the Philippines is not limited to just more traditional approaches of dikes or hydro-dams. Its geographical set-up in combination with local livelihoods highly dependent on water forces European companies providing water-related services to often look for case-specific and dynamic solutions. From electricity-generation, to water-sanitation, waste-water management or disaster risk reduction, this often results in a quite complex and innovative solution where European technology can play a central role. As European companies start to tap into this promising market, they should not neglect protecting their IP rights in the Philippines a good IP strategy can make the difference between succeeding or failing in the Philippines’ market, while counterfeiting and other IP violations are still relatively commonplace in the country. Continue reading “IP Protection Strategies for European SMEs Active in the Philippines’ Water Management Sector” »

Indonesia: New Notice Allows for Revival of Lapsed Patents

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patent-without backgroundGood news for the European SMEs whose patents in Indonesia have lapsed because of non-payment, it is now possible to revive these patents. Today’s blog post explaining the decision of Indonesia’s Directorate General of Intellectual Property about the revival of lapsed patents has  been kindly drafted for us by our South-East Asia IPR SME Helpdesk external expert Ms. Wongrat Ratanaprayul from Tilleke & Gibbins. 

Indonesia’s Directorate General of Intellectual Property issued a notice on December 28, 2017, addressing the revival of null and void patents. The notice allows patent holders, licensees, and intellectual property consultants to revive patents that have lapsed due to non-payment of annuities.

It is now possible to revive a lapsed patent by completing payment of annuity fees that were not paid on time according to the law. In order to do so, the patent holder must submit a declaration stating that they will not take any legal action against another party for infringement of the revived patent during the lapsed period.

There is no explanation as to whether third parties must immediately cease practicing a previously lapsed patent once it has been revived, or whether the patent owner would have the ability to take legal action against such a third party for ongoing infringement once the patent has been revived.

This notice leaves serious concerns about what happens to third parties who have started lawfully using a patent after it has lapsed. Since no further detail on this notice is available, the business implications for such third parties could be tremendous.

For holders of lapsed patents, however, the ability to recover such rights is a significant opportunity. Patent owners should therefore review their patent portfolios in Indonesia and assess whether to take advantage of this new opportunity to revive lapsed patents. Continue reading “Indonesia: New Notice Allows for Revival of Lapsed Patents” »