THE GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS AS THE NEW INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ITEM According to the Federal Law “On the Introduction of Amendments to Part Four of the Civil code of the Russian Federation” that shall come into force on the 27th of June 2020, a new civil law institute – the geographical indication is appearing in the Civil … Continue Reading
Before you begin selling your products on a U.S. online marketplace like Amazon, Etsy or Rakuten, there are three intellectual property considerations to make: clearance, acquisition and enforcement. This article provides a summary of all three considerations and includes steps to take to help mitigate risk, decrease instances of infringers and position your product for … Continue Reading
A recent decision of the Three-Member Court of Appeals of Komotini (Felonies Department), dated 19/11/2019, has been intensely debated by the national media as resulting to the first “real” prison sentence that has ever been imposed in our country to a website owner for illegally distributing copyright-protected content. Although the judgement has not been published … Continue Reading
The Supreme Court handed down a unanimous copyright decision in March 2019 with implications for anyone involved in a copyright dispute, as well as for marketers and brands that create and use copyrighted materials. In Fourth Estate Public Benefit Corporationv. Wall Street.com, LLC (Fourth Estate), the Court resolved a long-standing split among the circuits over the requirement … Continue Reading
In the framework of its efforts against online copyright piracy, the Hellenic Copyright Organization (“HCO”, Greek Acronym “OPI”) launched, on August 1st 2019, a new web portal, under the domain name “theLegalBay.gr”. The new website aims to be the place where online users can easily find web platforms available either solely in Greece or worldwide … Continue Reading
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently decided that agreements reached by 1-800 Contacts, Inc. with a number of its competitors to settle claims that the competitors’ online search advertising infringed on 1-800 Contacts’ trademarks unlawfully restricted the competitors’ ability to engage in search engine marketing, to the detriment of both consumers and search engines. The … Continue Reading
On November 6, 2018 a remarkable blow was delivered to online piracy in Greece. On that day, the newly-formed “Committee for Online Copyright Infringement” – informally and more descriptively also known as the Greek “Anti-Piracy Committee” – published its first decisions, ordering, by one of those (Decision No. 3/2018), all Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in … Continue Reading
The Amazon Marketplace, an online sales platform for third-party sellers, has seen a significant increase in popularity. It is not, however, the only third-party sales platform, Walmart.com, e-Bay, and Etsy are other popular marketplaces in the U.S., and all offer great ways for international sellers to enter the U.S. market. There are, however, some IP … Continue Reading
Background The Copyright Amendment (Online Infringement) Act 2018 (Act) which passed both Houses of Parliament on 28 November 2018, and is due to commence the day after it receives Royal Assent, amends section 115A of the Copyright Act 1968 (Cth). Section 115A of the Copyright Act was introduced in 2015 and enables a copyright owner to apply to the … Continue Reading
The Court of Appeal for England and Wales was asked to consider a case where 2 companies were using the same name in different territories, both legitimately, but one decided to exploit traffic mistakenly hitting its website by using targeted ads[1] The dispute involved two businesses who shared the “Argos” name, but on different sides … Continue Reading
A Hong Kong-based electronic toy manufacturer and its U.S. subsidiary agreed to pay the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) $650,000 to settle allegations that they violated the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) by collecting personal information from children without providing appropriate notice and consent, and by failing to take reasonable steps to secure the data … Continue Reading
Unfortunately, the unauthorized use of a celebrity’s name and image has become a deceptive advertising practice frequently used by dishonest online marketers. This type of ad typically claims (falsely) that a public figure has used or endorsed what is billed as the latest miracle weight loss supplement or wrinkle-reducing cosmetic. Going after these bad actors … Continue Reading
The protection of copyright from infringements taking place via the Internet has been in Greece until today extremely inefficient and time-consuming. Legal experts and copyright holders hope that this situation will alter soon. On July 2017, a new Copyright Law 4481/2017 was adopted amending the existing Copyright Law 2121/1993. The new Law provides dispositions aiming … Continue Reading
Instagram recently unveiled a new “branded content tool” that will allow influencers who are paid to endorse consumer products to tag partnering brands with an automated “paid partnership” disclosure. This new feature is intended to create more transparency in the Instagram community and to provide sponsors and influencers the ability to track the performance of … Continue Reading
BOTTOM LINE It remains to be seen what will happen after the GDPR becomes effective on May 25, 2018. The GDPR compliance roadmap can be helpful for any organization that collects or processes personal data, whether or not an organization in or outside of the EU believes it is subject to the GDPR. With just … Continue Reading
The GS Media case: “He’s making it up as he goes along!”[1] This is not a Brexit whinge, but when I reread the ECJ’s decision in the GS Media case[2], I do understand where 52% of my countrymen were coming from. Generally, the EU has (IMHO) been a force for good in IP law, by … Continue Reading
The plaintiff in a copyright infringement action has the option to choose to receive statutory damages rather than to establish its actual quantum of damages it has suffered. Statutory damages range from a minimum of $500 to a maximum of $20,000 for the infringements related to a given work. A plaintiff might choose statutory damages … Continue Reading
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) sent more than 90 letters to celebrities, athletes and other influencers – as well as to marketers – highlighting the need for influencers to “clearly and conspicuously” disclose their relationships to brands when they promote or endorse them on social media. The FTC letters mark the first time that the … Continue Reading
In Denmark, certain rules must be observed, if a company wants to turn to customers by electronic means to promote or to sell products and services. Basically, the company must have the customers consent before the company can send out marketing. If there is no consent marketing through electronic means as text messages or e-mail … Continue Reading
In a long-standing case brought against the video platform Vimeo by several music publishers, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit recently set the bar high for copyright owners to succeed in their infringement claims against service providers based on allegations of “red flag knowledge.” The Second Circuit, shedding some light on what is … Continue Reading
With the ever-expanding role of social media and the Internet, negative reviews can spread virtually unchecked. Although some negative reviews are limited to statements of opinion that, generally, are legally protected, companies and individuals increasingly are subject to attacks that include false statements constituting online defamation. The legal avenues for addressing defamatory comments and obtaining … Continue Reading
Lately social media has drawn a lot of attention in relation to unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices. Most recently, the Danish consumer ombudsman has reported the media bureau MemeCph and the toothpaste producer Unilever for being responsible for hidden advertisement through a Danish pop singer on her Instagram-profile. Furthermore, the consumer ombudsman in 2015 published a guideline … Continue Reading
Canada’s anti-spam law (“CASL”) outlines violations, enforcement mechanisms, and penalties aimed at protecting online consumers against spam, electronic threats, and misuse of digital technology. CASL’s anti-spam rules came into effect on July 1, 2014. CASL’s software update and installation rules came into effect on January 15, 2015. The latter rules are often referred to as … Continue Reading
Social media sites are becoming increasingly popular for marketing a company’s goods or services. Facebook is commonly used to promote sweepstakes and contests intended to attract new customers and increase “likes.” However, if a contest contains a popularity feature, such as a photo contest where the public can vote on which image they prefer, it … Continue Reading
