Cambodia applied online Registration System for Trade Marks

Posted on 4-May-2018 by Helika Jurgenson

Good news for all the European SMEs wishing to do business in Cambodia, it is now possible to file trade mark registration applications online. Today’s blog post has been kindly shared with us by our South-East Asia IPR SME Helpdesk external expert Mr. Nguyen Hoa Binh from Daitin & Associates. In this blog post Mr. Nguyen Hoa Binh explains the new online application process in more detail.

On 25 May 2017, the Ministry of Commerce in Cambodia launched online trade mark filing system.

The new launched online filing system allow Applicant to file applications to register their trade marks online.

Accordingly, Applicants can upload the required documents and information through the online trade mark filing system.

The trademark applicant can also conduct preliminary trademark search from the Cambodia Department of Intellectual Property database.

Under the Prakas (Regulation) issued by the Ministry of Commerce on May 4, 2017, an applicant with permanent residence or principal place of business inside Cambodia can use this system.

The applicant has to request in writing to the DIP for a user name and password. For foreign applicants, the system can only be used through a registered Cambodian trademark agent.

Once the trademark application has been filed, when the applicant is represented by an agent, the original, notarized power of attorney, along with any priority documents, must be submitted in hard copy to the Department of Intellectual Property within two months from the filing date. Continue reading “Cambodia applied online Registration System for Trade Marks” »

Intellectuele eigendom toetsing bij buitenlandse overnames in China

Posted on 2-May-2018 by Helika Jurgenson

In onze meest recente blog-post, vertelt externe China IPR SME Helpdesk expert Reinout van Malenstein, als Senior Counsel werkend bij HFG Law & Intellectual Property, u meer over intellectuele eigendom toetsing bij buitenlands overnames in China. Voor bedrijven die geïnteresseerd zijn in dit onderwerp zal deze blog u meer vertellen hoe de huidige beleiedsstrategie CM2025 intellectueel eigendom in China zal beïnvloeden, en hoe u daar als Nederlands bedrijf in China het best mee om kunt gaan. Deze blog is geschreven in het Nederlands en is eerder gepubliceerd op China2025.nl, het China crowdblog.

Behoud de Nederlandse innovatieve eredivisie op het wereldtoneel

Zoals de European Union Chamber of Commerce in China de laatste jaren meerdere malen heeft aangegeven, is het zeer lastig voor Europese bedrijven om Chinese bedrijven over te nemen, terwijl dit omgekeerd relatief gemakkelijk is. De regelgeving in Nederland en Europa is gemaakt als fair level playing field voor binnenlandse en buitenlandse bedrijven. Dat is natuurlijk heel fair en ideaal, maar het is belangrijk dat Nederland en Europa zich realiseren dat China een andere agenda heeft, en dat Chinese ondernemingen in bepaalde sectoren worden beschermd ten opzichte van buitenlandse ondernemingen op de Chinese markt.

China Manufacturing 2025

De bescherming van bepaalde markten en het doel om in bepaalde sectoren controle te verkrijgen over intellectuele eigendom blijkt duidelijk uit China Manufacturing 2025 (CM2025). CM2025 is door de Chinese overheid in 2015 ingevoerd als lange termijn strategie om China op het internationale toneel tot innovatieve speler te maken. In dit beleid verandert China van goedkoop land met betrekking tot het produceren van goederen in een innovatief land. Een strategie à la Apple: “made in China, designed in California“, maar dan in die zin dat de grote winsten van de intellectuele eigendom naar China gaan en niet naar buitenlandse bedrijven. Fijn voor China in dit beleid, is dat veel grote Chinese spelers op de markt staatsbedrijven zijn, en dus makkelijk kunnen inspelen op voorgeschoteld beleid van de overheid. Continue reading “Intellectuele eigendom toetsing bij buitenlandse overnames in China” »

IP Considerations in the Medical Device & Healthcare Industry in South-East Asia

Posted on 1-May-2018 by Helika Jurgenson

In today’s blog post we are discussing how to best protect your IP in the medical device and healthcare sector in South-East Asia. You will learn more about patent protection, design protection and trade mark protection in this industry. Since medical device and healthcare industry is very R&D intensive, we are also discussing how to protect your IP while conducting R&D activities in South-East Asia.

Rapid demographic changes and health reforms within South-East Asia are expected to create enormous demands in the health care market in the near future. Growth in average annual healthcare expenditure between 2014-18 is expected to be around 11% of GDP in ASEAN – but with highly varied rates among the countries: Vietnam with the highest at 6.6% and Myanmar with the lowest at 1.8%.[1] At the same time, amongst many South-East Asia countries, local pharmaceuticals are not well trusted, making way for foreign players with strong brands to establish significant market share in South-East Asia. This offers many promising business opportunities for the European SMEs engaged in medical device and healthcare industries, as European brands with high and positive brand recognition are expected to be favored by local governments and clinicians over their lesser-known competitors.

The healthcare industry in South-East Asia also serves a rapidly growing medical tourism industry which is expanding globally at a rate of about 25% and it is claimed that nearly a third of all medical tourists in the world receive medical attention in South-East Asia[2]. Furthermore, many South-East Asian countries like Thailand and Singapore aspire to become the medical and healthcare hubs in the region, offering various opportunities for the European SMEs.

Even though, IP laws and regulations have improved a lot in South-East Asia over the past five years, counterfeiting and other IP violations are still commonplace in the region. EU SMEs would therefore benefit from understanding the different intellectual property rights that are relevant to the medical device & healthcare industry and determine the effective way to protect their IP rights in South-East Asia. Continue reading “IP Considerations in the Medical Device & Healthcare Industry in South-East Asia” »

Trade Fairs in China: Steps to Protect You IPR

Posted on 27-Apr-2018 by Helika Jurgenson

Page 1. 1.Protecting your IP at Trade Fairs In today’s blog post we are taking a closer look on how European SMEs can protect their intellectual property when they attend trade fairs in China. You’ll learn how to prepare for a trade fair, what to do and pay attention to during the trade fair and, of course, what to do in a case that someone is violating your IPR rights.

Trade fairs are an excellent opportunity for a business to showcase their new products and scout out business partners for manufacturing, promotion, and distribution. Unfortunately, in China these exhibitions are a common prowling ground for infringers, so it is of utmost importance to ensure all intellectual property precautions are undertaken. It is not sufficient to merely gain intellectual property rights for a company’s assets – steps should be taken before, during and after a trade fair to ensure maximum protection. This article takes a look at some of the steps foreign businesses should take.

Before the trade fair: fail to prepare, prepare to fail

Determine your strategy in advance of the trade fair. Do you want to take enforcement action at the fair, or only use the fair as an opportunity to gather evidence? If you are not certain about securing all necessary evidence and paperwork to carry out an action at the fair, gathering evidence there first may be a better strategy.

Prepare the required documents – some may need to be notarised and legalised which can take up to two months. The required documents include: Continue reading “Trade Fairs in China: Steps to Protect You IPR” »

How to Remove Counterfeit Goods from E-Commerce Sites in South-East Asia

Posted on 25-Apr-2018 by Helika Jurgenson

E-commerce has also been growing in South-East Asia and it’s attracting many European Companies. Together with the growth of e-commerce, the presence of counterfeit goods on these e-commerce sites has also been growing. In today’s blog post we are discussing how to remove counterfeits from the major e-commerce sites like Lazada in South-East Asia.

A growing middle class coupled with increasing internet access has led to fast-paced e-commerce growth in South-East Asia in the past decades. The middle-class population of ASEAN, according to expert estimates, may grow from 190 million in 2012 to 400 million in 2020[1] . Additionally, there are approximately 200 million people in South-East Asia with access to the internet and this number is expected to grow three-fold by 2025. E-commerce in South-East Asia can thus offer many promising business opportunities for the European SMEs.

Besides being a forum for legitimate vendors and original products, the internet is also used by unscrupulous businesses as a platform for the distribution of counterfeit goods which infringe intellectual property rights of others. The explosive growth in access to the internet has resulted in counterfeiters to move their illegal activities online. Online e-commerce websites might become easy and anonymous options for counterfeiters to reach out to potential customers as well as popular social media platforms. A recent study reported that 20% of 750,000 posts on the popular social media platform Instagram alone in relation to well-known fashion brands involved the offer of counterfeit products for sales, with many of the vendors identified to be based in China, Malaysia and Indonesia among others[2]. Continue reading “How to Remove Counterfeit Goods from E-Commerce Sites in South-East Asia” »

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