Arquivos do Mês: July 2023

Clique aqui para ler esta notícia em português.

Billionaire Elon Musk’s decision to rebrand Twitter as X could be complicated from a legal point of view: companies like Meta and Microsoft already have intellectual property rights over the same letter.

X is so widely used and referenced in trademarks that it is a candidate for legal challenges, and the company, formerly known as Twitter, could face problems defending its X brand in the future.

“There’s a 100% chance that someone over this will sue Twitter,” said trademark attorney Josh Gerben. He counted nearly 900 active U.S. trademark registrations covering the letter X in various sectors.

Musk renamed Twitter “X” on Monday and unveiled a new logo for the social media platform, a stylized black and white version of the letter.

Owners of trademarks – which protect items such as brand names, logos, and slogans that identify product sources – can claim infringement if another mark causes consumer confusion. Remedial measures range from monetary damages to blocking use.

Since 2003, Microsoft has owned an X trademark for communications about its Xbox video game. Meta — whose Threads platform is a new rival to Twitter — has a U.S. trademark registered in 2019 that encompasses a blue and white letter “X” for fields that include software and social media.

Gerben said that Meta and Microsoft likely won’t sue unless they feel threatened by Twitter’s X invading the brand equity they’ve built with the letter.

The three companies did not respond to requests for comment.

Meta itself faced intellectual property challenges when it changed its name from Facebook. It faces trademark lawsuits filed last year by investment firm Metacapital and virtual reality firm MetaX and has settled another lawsuit over its new infinity logo.

And if Musk changes the name, others can still claim the “X” for themselves.

“Given the difficulty of protecting a single letter, especially one as commercially popular as ‘X,’ Twitter’s protection will likely be limited to graphics very similar to its X logo,” said Douglas Masters, trademark attorney at Loeb & Loeb.

“The logo is not distinctive, so that protection will be minimal.”

Source: CNN

Clique aqui para ler esta notícia em português.

Three graphic designers are suing Chinese fast-fashion giant Shein over what they claim is “egregious” copyright infringement and extortion.

In the lawsuit filed in California Federal Court on Tuesday, the designers allege that Shein produced and sold exact copies of their designs.

They claim Shein uses “secret algorithms” to determine fashion trends – algorithms they claim “wouldn’t work” without generating exact copies of the artists’ work.

The designers say the company got rich by “committing individual infractions repeatedly.”

The lawsuit points out that the fast-fashion retailer violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, or RICO, arguing that these allegations are appropriate because Shein is not just a single entity but rather an “association of de facto entities.”

“No Coco Chanel or Yves Saint Laurent is behind the Shein empire. Instead, there is a mysterious tech genius, Xu Yangtian, also known as Chris Xu,” the lawsuit states.

Citing a BBC Channel 4 documentary, “Inside the Shein Machine,” the lawsuit adds: “When you start to look behind it, who the company is for, it’s a big black hole.”

The complaint alleges that Shein’s corporate structure reveals that the company is a decentralized group of entities so that the company can avoid “liability” and “disclosure of basic information.”

A Shein spokesperson said: “Shein takes all infringement claims seriously, and we take swift action when valid intellectual property rights holders file complaints. We will defend ourselves vigorously against this lawsuit and any claims without merit.”

Krista Perry, one of the designers who showcased the process, created a product titled “Make it Fun,” a print that features a multicolored design around the phrase.

According to the lawsuit, she soon noticed that Shein.com was selling copies of her designs. Following the complaint, she alleges that the email address copyright@shein.com sent her a message offering $500, which she declined.

According to the “About Us” page, Shein says the company only makes 100 to 200 pieces of each model at launch.

These small quantities are intentional; the lawsuit alleges that, before making more parts, Shein can see if anyone complains about a stolen design.

Source: CNN

Clique aqui para ler esta notícia em português.

The National Advertising Self-Regulation Council of Brazil (Conar) opened last Friday (7) an ethical representation against one of the advertisements for the release of the movie “Barbie,” starring Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling.

This means that the trailer for the release of the feature can no longer be shown in any cinema session whose classification is open to children under 12 years of age to verify their compliance with the recommendations of the Brazilian Advertising Self-Regulation Code.

The agency said the representation “is solely and exclusively aimed at the advertisement, since the film is an artistic work, therefore outside the scope of the Code.”

For CNN, Conar’s press office said that Warner, responsible for production and distribution, can “appeal the injunction and is invited to defend itself before Conar’s Ethics Council.”

Official note from Conar

“Then, the rapporteur for the representation granted a partial injunction, taking into account that the trailer is being ostensibly displayed for children and with scenes of non-urbanity, lack of good manners or violent/unsafe act, which violates recommendations of Section 11 of the Code.

In this sense, and because the protection of children’s rights is subject to the precautionary principle, it granted a partial preliminary injunction, recommending that the disclosure of one of the film’s teasers be stopped, a restriction valid only for disclosures in commercial space blocks at cinema sessions films with an indicative rating of less than 12 years, as this is the child protection age established by article 2 of the Child and Adolescent Statute.”

CNN contacted Warner questioning the company’s position, and until the publication of this text, there was no response.

Source: CNN

Clique aqui para ler esta notícia em português.

Chinese tech giant Huawei has once again claimed the top spot in the 5G patents ranking, beating out notable competitors such as Qualcomm and Samsung.

Huawei stands out with 14.59% of global 5G patents

According to a recent report by the Chinese Academy of Information and Communication Technology, Huawei’s 5G patents rank first in the world regarding standards. The report, titled “Global 5G Standard Essential Patent Investigation and Proposed Standard (2023),” reveals that Huawei’s effective global patent families account for 14.59% of the worldwide market.

On the other hand, Qualcomm ranks second with 10.04% of the patents, and Samsung ranks third with 8.80% of the patent share.

Other Big Players in the 5G Patent Ranking

The top 10 players in this ranking include ZTE, LG, Nokia, Ericsson, Datang, OPPO, and Xiaomi. Huawei has remained a leader in 5G technologies, and the company holds most of the 5G network patents in the world.

This leadership reaffirms Huawei’s central role in the telecommunications industry. Despite recent turmoil and geopolitical challenges, the company has managed to maintain its dominant position in the race for 5G technology leadership, outperforming some of its biggest international competitors.

Source: MSN

Clique aqui para ler esta notícia em português.

The Japanese multinational Yakult, famous for its fermented milk, was recognized by the Brazilian Patent Office (BPTO) as a highly renowned trademark. In a decision dated June 13, the agency granted an appeal and understood that the three-dimensional mark representing the bottle of the drink “has a sufficient degree of distinctiveness and exclusivity” to gain registration.

In practice, this means that the packaging symbolizing the trademark will be protected in all branches of activity for ten years. “Since protection is now applied to all classes of products and services, regardless of whether or not Yakult is registered in that specific class, no manufacturer can use it to identify any products or services without authorization”, explains lawyer Luiza Araripe, whose office, Araripe Advogados, represented the company in the case.

The company, which had filed the application in April 2020, needed to prove that Brazilians widely recognized the Yakult bottle; it had a reputation and prestige among consumers and a sufficient degree of distinctiveness and exclusivity in the market. In the decision, the INPI highlighted that, even without the label, the packaging was associated by consumers with the product.

For the Institute, trademarks that are widely known and prestigious in the market are considered highly renowned. Santander, Google, WhatsApp, Gillette, Yahoo, and Waze are trademarks registered in 2023.

Source: JOTA