[Franchise Asia] Too Pedantic with the “P”?
What in the name…!: A tale of two AMCs
In a recent Singaporean case, AMC Live Group China Pte Ltd (“AMC Live”) successfully used the “Own Name Defence” in response to infringement proceedings. The plaintiff, The Audience Motivation Company Asia Pte Ltd (“AMC Asia”) claimed that the defendant, AMC Live, had infringed two of its registered trademarks and also brought a claim against them […]
[Business Today] No break for Kit Kat
[Business Today] Too Pedantic with the “P”?
[Malaysia SME] Too Pedantic with the “P”?
Don’t Go Chasing Watersports: F1 vs F1H20
To most people the term “F1” is synonymous with the highest level of motor sport where the races are fuelled as much by drama as they are by gasoline. With year round races taking place in 19 countries, spreading across 6 continents and watched by hundreds of millions of TV audiences worldwide, the fame of […]
[The Petri Dish] Stem Cell Research: Embryonic vs Non-Embryonic
A Rose by Any Other Name…
“It is the time you have lost for your rose that makes your rose so important,” wrote Antoine de Saint-Exupéry in The Little Prince. This saying proved particularly apt in the feud between two cosmetic distributors, Hai Tong Co (Pte) Ltd v. Ventree Singapore Pte Ltd et al., which was finally settled in a cross-appeal case that was brought […]
Change of Patent Law in Singapore from “Self-Assessment” to “Positive Grant” System
The Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) will implement a new system in their patent law and regulations, effective 11 January 2014. New Singapore national applications, PCT national phase applications and divisional patent applications filed on or after the effective date will be prosecuted under the new “Positive Grant System”. Currently IPOS practices a “Self-Assessment […]
The “KENZO” Dilemma
Kenzo Tsujimoto (hereafter known as “the Applicant”) is the proprietor of a winery in Napa Valley, California, USA. He filed for a trademark application in Singapore for the word mark “KENZO ESTATE” for “wine, alcoholic beverages of fruit and western liquors” in Class 33. When the application was published, Kenzo (“the Opponent”), the proprietor of […]