21st November, 2011

SC issues notice to CG of Patents, Designs & Trade Marks over toothbrush dispute

The Supreme Court of India has issued a notice to the Controller General of Patents and Designs and Anchor Health and Beauty Care on a petition filed by US-based Colgate Palmolive Company regarding a legal dispute over toothbrush designs.

The esteemed court has sought a reply from the patents authority and Mumbai-based Anchor regarding why Colgate should not be allowed to manufacture and market its Colgate Zig-Zag design toothbrush. The Calcutta High Court had earlier passed a judgment that held that Colgate’s Zig-Zag design could not have been registered as Anchor’s registered designs were published earlier. Colgate had challenged this judgment. Colgate had disputed that the provisions in the Designs Act, 2000, specify that subsequent registration cannot be held invalid on account of previous registration or previous publication.

Colgate Palmolive had registered Colgate Sensitive, Colgate Zig-Zag Flexible and Colgate Zig-Zag, the three toothbrush designs with the patents office and their competitor Anchor Health and Beauty Care had filed petitions seeking cancellation of these designs, claiming that its product, Anchor Advance Grip, had already been patented both in India and abroad and similar designs could not be registered again.

The Controller of Patents and Designs in July 2008 held that the three models registered as ‘toothbrushes’ by Colgate Palmolive were different from products registered earlier, which was challenged by Anchor in an appeal before the high court. The high court upheld the Controller’s order on two toothbrush designs registered by Colgate Palmolive but ordered cancellation of the Colgate Zig-Zag design.

Trademark Registration for ‘111' declined by New Zealand IP Office

A trademark application to register “111” as a trademark in New Zealand was declined by its Intellectual Property Office. Police, the Fire Service and St John jointly tried to register 111 as a trademark with the Intellectual Property Office. The Telecom Corp. of New Zealand Ltd., which provides the 111 service, objected to the registration, stating that protecting the number for emergency use only could prevent people from using it for various other services.

Telecom receives nearly 2.7 million ‘111’ calls per year, with only 36 percent associated to a actual emergency.

Also under New Zealand law, trademark must be used in trade and commerce, and the fire, police and ambulance services do not qualify as commercial entities – the other reason for the refusal according to the Assistant Commissioner of Trademarks. In 1994, Telecom had earlier tried to trademark the number, but the plan was abandoned after four years.

Don 2 in copyright infringement dispute

Shah Rukh Khan's 'Don 2' scheduled to be released in the last week of December 2011 is in the middle of a legal dispute. Nariman Films, the producers of the original film "DON" starring Amitabh Bachchan released in 1978 have sent a legal notice to the makers of Don 2 over the remaking and title copyright infringement.

Nariman Films state that they had given the remaking rights for ‘Don - The chase begins again’ in 2005 and never gave remaking rights for "Don-2 - The chase continues”. The producers allege infringement of their Copyrights of their film "Don". Legal Notice has been sent to Excel Entertainment, Red Chillies Entertainment, Reliance Entertainment, Shah Rukh Khan, Farhan Akhtar, Ritesh Sidhwani and Baba Arts for Infringement of Copyrights. The remaking rights for the film 'Don- The chase begins again' was granted by an agreement which expired in 2009.

Excel Entertainment and Red Chillies have made the film Don 2 ,the chase continues, without renewing of the remaking rights, thus infringing upon the title registered to Nariman Films i.e "Don" and "Don-2 - the Return of the King”.

Titan acquires Swiss luxury watch brand Favre Leuba

Titan Industries Ltd. is in the process of acquiring the 274 year old Fevre Leuba brand of Switzerland. The Indian watches and jewelry making company has signed a binding agreement with Spain's Valfamily S.L. and Switzerland's Maison Favre Leuba S.A. and would spend 2 million Euro (over Rs 13 crore) for acquiring Favre Leuba with gloabl rights to the trademarks of this brand.

The acquisition being a part of the company’s business plan to expand its product portfolio would reinforce the existing watches brand of the company with a Swiss heritage brand. Formed in Switzerland in 1737, Favre Leuba, has a prosperous record in international markets, including in India.

China granted 13 industrial design patents for Apple’s iPad 2

China’s Hong Kong IP Department has granted thirteen new design patents relating to Apple’s iPad 2.

The designs cover Apple’s Black, White and 3G iPad 2 models in a series of both photographic and illustrative design styles. The entire set of 13 design wins for the iPad two were originally filed in July this year and granted on November 04, 2011. All of the iPad 2 designs are protected until July 2016.

Apple was also granted 40 design wins for its iOS graphic elements, the MacBook Air and architecture of its three stores in Shanghai in September this year.

Kellogg and Mayan Archeology Group settle trademark row with over toucan logo

Michigan-based Kellogg Co. has settled its fight with the Maya Archaeology Initiative (MAI) over the use of a toucan symbol. The maker of Cocoa Puffs, Froot Loops and Rice Krispies cereals had apprehended that the toucan logo used by the archeology group was too similar to the Toucan Sam character on its Froot Loops cereal. Kellogg had earlier claimed that the rainbow-billed toucan trademark used on its Froot Loops package was infringed by MAI’s logo featuring a toucan standing in front of a Mayan pyramid. The dispute between them arose when MAI filed an application to register its toucan as a trademark and Kellogg feared the risk of losing Toucan Sam as Kellogg’s Froot Loops trademark, in use since 1963.

The cereal maker has now allowed the San Francisco-based nonprofit organization to continue using its representation of a toucan, and will also contribute $100,000 towards establishing a Mayan cultural center. Kellogg will also feature main Mayan activities and a link to MAI's website on Froot Loops boxes next year to educate American children and their parents about the Maya culture.

The Maya Archeology Initiative is a non- governmental group involved with the protection of the Guatemalan biosphere. Its logo is based on an existing toucan native to Mesoamerica — a region from central Mexico to Belize.