Few are those nowadays who have not heard of the wonders of machine learning technologies. Names such as “ChatGPT”, “DeepSeek” or “Midjourney” have become known to virtually everybody and, for many, are now part of our everyday life. Writing a moving poem, drawing a realistic picture or composing a pretty melody has never been as easy as with the help of these new virtual assistants. As artificial intelligence (so-called “AI”) becomes increasingly involved in creative processes, the question of whether copyright protection may be granted to AI-generated content becomes more relevant by the day.

When was the last time that you bought something not just off the shelf, but with giving it a little more thought before buying? Did you look for test results for the product category that you were interested in and if so, did the results influence which product exactly you ended up buying? And what does all of that have to do with trademarks? Here is the answer…

                         

                     DE 30 2016 033 191                                                                           DE 30 2008 025 577

(Examples of blank test labels registered with the German Patent and Trademark Office)

As of 1 January 2020 you should be aware that various (international) classifactions have been updated again and have come into force. Classifications serve to index the content of intellectual property rights and documents. The aim is to standardize and to allow for content-driven retrieval, independent of the language of the respective document or the catchwords used. Classifications are important for systemizing IP searches in the corresponding databases, enabling to retrieve detailed and correct information.

Oktoberfest Table in Munich, Germany, for 8 people – Sunday, 27 September 2020, 4.30 pm – 11.00 pm

Charity Auction: starts: 5 December – ends 15 December 2019 (9.06 pm German time)

Why should you participate and bid:

As many trademark owners in Germany and other western countries have experienced in the past, the demand for their high-quality products is very high with the middle class in China. Unfortunately, it is quite difficult for Chinese customers to distinguish between genuine products that have been imported by the European manufacturer on the one hand and imitations by counterfeiters on the other hand. Particularly with food products and its health implications, it is extremely important to make sure that products are genuine. To protect consumers and to strengthen their trade relationship, the EU and China concluded an agreement on the reciprocal protection of Geographical Indications (GIs) on 6 November 2019. The corresponding press release of the European Commission can be found at  

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_19_6200

If you have ever had to take your case from the EUIPO to the General Court or even to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), it might have taken you a while to get a decision. Thus, among other reasons, the European Union decided to slightly amend the judicial structure of the Court of Justice to make the system more efficient.

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Over the last few years, an increasing amount of law firms have announced that they will start using artificial intelligence (AI). However, for many it may still be unclear what the concept of AI includes and what kind of possibilities it has to offer especially in the legal field. This article aims to give an overview on how law firms can take advantage of AI and chatbots to support their daily work. At the end of the article, the possible impact that AI will have on the legal profession is shortly discussed.

The German Patent and Trademark Office (GPTO) refused registration of the trademark “Oktoberfest” – just before the Münchner Oktoberfest will start.

 

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With the legal profession traditionally being male-dominated, Lawyer Monthly aims to recognise the struggles female lawyers overcome, in order to be the best for their clients. That is why we are very proud to have received the Women in Law Award and to be on the cover of the 2019 edition of the Lawyer Monthly Women in Law Awards Magazine.

H’ugo’s – a famous Munich local Pizza Bar Lounge wins trademark case at the European Union General Court

With its decision dated 9 July 2019, the European General Court (T-397/18) confirms the finding of the previous EUIPO instances regarding the likelihood of confusion between the prior word mark “H’ugo’s” and a younger figurative mark containing the word elements “HUGO’S BURGER BAR” (European Union Trademark Application No. 014608806).


H’ugo’s                             vs.                       

EUTM no. 006706022                                     EUTMA no. 014608806
(word mark)                                                   (figurative mark)

In June 2019, Brand Finance, an independent brand valuation consultancy with offices all over the world published its annual report ‘Beers 25 2019’ which lists the world’s most valuable beer brands – and found Budweiser’s brand value was USD 7.5 billion.