NEW CONTOLLER GENERAL APPPOINTED

Mr. P.H.Kurian, a malayali of the 1986 cadre of the IAS has been appointed the new Controller General of the Patent, Designs and Trademarks. This is historic in nature as it is for the first time that an IAS officer is being appointed.

All IP practioners are waiting with baited breath to see whether any changes will come about in the Registry’s. There are many much desired changes that are urgently required to arrest ineeficient maner in which the Registry’s are presently running.

A new change being noticed is that the examiners are writing their comments on a sheet of paper which is being attached with the examination report when being sent.

CRISTIANO RONALDO's TRADEMARK

The Telegraph today reported that Cristiano Ronaldo, who is Portuguese, has obtained a Portuguese trade mark for the mark 'CR9' fuelling speculation that Ronaldo will leave his current club Manchester United to play for Real Madrid. The newspaper states that Ronaldo, who currently plays for Manchester United wearing a No 7 shirt, has been promised the No 9 shirt by the Spanish club Real Madrid.

MOLDOVA RATIFIES SINGAPORE TREATY

The republic of Moldova has ratified the Singapore treaty on the Law of Trademarks and the treaty wil formally come in to force on the March 16, 2009.

CSE INFRINGES COPYRIGHT OF HT

The Delhi High Court has asked the CSE or the Center for Sciemce and Environment, to remove all material which they had taken from Hindustan Times.

The CSE was infringing the copyright of HT by repreoducing material verbatime from HT's publications and potraying them as their own.

Copyright inringement on the Internet seems to be on the increase and users will have to be wary as to how they use materila which they put on the Internet.

HUGH LADDIE PASSES AWAY

Sir Hugh Laddie, a respected and a legendary figure in the field of IPR passed away. He was born in the year 1946 and contributed greatly to IPR especially in the fields of Patents and Copyright. His various decisoons and utterances which are of great academic interest can fill many books by itself.

He was a great man and his loss will be deeply felt in the IPR arena.

FC LIVERPOOL AND TM

A spat has arisen over the application of the mighty Liverpool Football Club to register the Liverbird element of its famous badge as a United Kingdom trade mark for goods in Classes 6, 14, 16, 18, 31 and 25 in the face of opposition from local politicians.

ANOTHER BRICK IN THE WALL

Lego was the receipent of bad news today from the CFI. The CFI rejected Lego's appeal against OHIM's Board of Appeal's decision that the Lego brick shape is not registrable as a CTM.