The trademark’s force impact on the enterprise market value

Whats the importance of the trademark’s makert force?

The trademark is one of the most important assets a company might invest in, given the relativity of its intangible worth, which is defined by several external and market aspects, besides the elements and characteristics of the trademark itself.

 

Therefore, a strong trademark confers the company that owns it relevant value and possible leverage in negotiations in general, as mergers and acquisitions, since it makes part on the very company market value, generating direct impact on the transaction’s agreed price.

 

In order to achieve such advantage, the enterpreuner must watch out for the three main aspects that configure a strong trademark. They are: design, customer service and marketing.

 

Obviously, the design must be attractive to the clientele, in order to benefit the company expansion. Furthermore, there are certain precautions the enterpreuner must attend to for the best performance of the trademark in the market reality, such as intrinsic distinctiveness and highlighting among its competitors. 

 

 

The same applies to the marketing campaigns, as well managed ones are a key factor the to trademark visibility, notoriety and prestige.

 

As we know, most companies came to realize that the customer service is increasingly becoming the determining factor for clients’ purchasing decision, as well as fidelity and the possibility of spreading the business quality.

 

By these means, we have that companies must strive for creating a strong trademark to assign its business, that should be able to attract and maintain the clientele, in order to add value to the company itself, granting possible leverage in all kinds of intercompany negotiatons.

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Author: Enzo Toyoda Coppola, and Cesar Peduti Filho, Peduti Advogados.

Source: Qual a importância da marca em fusões e aquisições?

https://leouve.com.br/ultimas/qual-a-importancia-da-marca-em-fusoes-e-aquisicoes#:~:text=A%20marca%20pode%20influenciar%20positivamente,expandir%20e%20aumentar%20seus%20lucros.

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“If you want to learn more about this topic, contact the author or the managing partner, Dr. Cesar Peduti Filho.”

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Brazil joins Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement for the international protection of Industrial Designs

On February 13, 2023, Brazil filed before WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) the Instrument of Adherence to the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement for the international protection of Industrial Designs.

 

The adherance to this Act will allow the onwer of Industrial Designs to seek their protection in 96 countries, through one filing. This will reduce costs and bureaucracy related to such protection.

 

This system can be compared to the Madrid Protocol system for trademarks, since the procedure to protect the Industrial Design in other countries throguh Hauge system is very similar to the one to protect trademarks internationally, through Madrid Protocol: the owner of an application or registration can designate it to other countries, at once, through WIPO.

 

 

The Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office will start receiving international applications for Industrial Designs, through Hauge system, on August 1st, 2023. 

 

The expetation is that the adherence to this system will increase considerably the filings of Industrial Designs in Brazil.

 

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Author: Carollina Marfara, and Cesar Peduti Filho at Peduti Advogados.

Source: Brasil adere ao Sistema de Haia para a proteção internacional de Desenhos Industriais

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“If you want to learn more about this topic, contact the author or the managing partner, Dr. Cesar Peduti Filho.”

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Video games, the metaverse and diversity

Intellectual Property, video games, metaverse, diversity, Tencent, Peduti

Recentley Jia Wang, a veteran leader in data science and engineering within the interactive entertainment industry, shared her views with WIPO Magazine on the future of the video games industry and the role that intellectual property (IP) plays in it.

 

Tencent is a global technology firm that operates the world’s leading video game development, publishing and operations platform, and Jia Wang is the Deputy Director of the Technology Service Center for the North Americas Team.

 

Jia Wang clarifies that Tencent is strongly committed to IP and recognizes its enabling role in generating a more vibrant, creative, and innovative ecosystem for games and other areas of their business. A game is both a creative and a technical product and IP protects both aspects. There’s a lot of IP involved in the games that Tencent develops, from the technical mechanisms that enable and enrich the user’s experience to the storyline and the heroes they create.

 

Video games, the metaverse and diversity

 

Regarding to the mertaverse, Jia Wang explains that it’s not yet clear what it is or how it will evolve, although there’s a huge buzz around it. Tencent sees the metaverse as part of “hyper-digital reality”, a concept that integrates the digital world with reality to create a blended experience, which will allow people to connect more deeply with the virtual world. It will simply spark people’s imagination and push the boundaries of possibility.

 

Finally, talking about diversity, Jia Wang highlights that women in all sectors face many challenges, and that in the games industry they are definitely in the minority, but that’s changing. At Tencent America, for example, there is commitment to diversity and inclusion, many women are in leadership positions and there’s a strong sense that women can be successful there. The games industry requires many different skill sets, and that creates a lot of opportunity for everyone.

 

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Author: Nathália Regina Alves Dourado, Bachelor of Laws, at Peduti Advogados.

Source: Tencent, video games, the metaverse and diversity: an insider’s view 

 

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“If you want to learn more about this topic, contact the author or the managing partner, Dr. Cesar Peduti Filho.”

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Copyright On Music

COPYRIGHT OVER MUSIC

Atualizado no dia 20 de Março de 2023.

Many artists such as Justin Timberlake, Bob Dylan, Justin Bieber and Imagine Dragons, at the end of 2021 rushed to sell their rights to their royalties [1]. While many feared the Biden administration’s heavy tax hike proposals at the time, others sold their assets for estate planning purposes. Whichever the reason, the topic at hand proves to be an effective case study for us to dive deeper into the type of intellectual property that protects the work from those artists, the Copyright.

 

This article serves as a basic guide on the subject. For starters, the U.S. and Brazilian law are very much like one another, adopting an international groundwork over its concept as well as type of protection. 

 

According to the U.S. Copyright Office, “copyright is a type of intellectual property that protects original works of authorship as soon as an author fixes the work in a tangible form of expression” [3].

 

This means that any kind of independently created expression from a human author with a minimal degree of creativity can be protected by the law, it only needs to be fixed, in other words, it only must be captured “in a sufficiently permanent medium such the work can be perceived, reproduced, or communicated for more than a short time” [3].

 

COPYRIGHT OVER MUSIC

 

This means that any kind of independently created expression from a human author with a minimal degree of creativity can be protected by the law, it only needs to be fixed, in other words, it only must be captured “in a sufficiently permanent medium such the work can be perceived, reproduced, or communicated for more than a short time” [3].

 

Concerning the copyright on music, Brazilian law distinguishes four main types of work that can be protected [4]: (i) the music arrangements; (ii) compositions; (iii) lyrics; and (iv) music partitures. In both countries, however, the length of copyright protection is equal to the term of life of the author plus seventy years after the author’s death. 

 

In addition, anyone can be a copyright owner. Copyright law allows ownership by companies, organizations, and other people besides the work’s creator. And with ownership of said properties, owners are entitled to compensation from the profits made from such assets in the form of licensing revenue.

 

So, when a musician makes a song, and that song is partially or completely owned by the artist, that same song can generate royalties from streaming, cd sales, movie contracts and more. These same copyright ownerships are not only capable of generating revenue, but can be bought, sold, and dealt with just as any other physical asset.

 

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Author: Juliana Kaomy Mikado, Junior Associate at Peduti Advogados.

Source: 

[1] Justin Bieber sells his music catalog. Disponível em: https://edition.cnn.com/2023/01/24/media/justin-bieber-music-catalog-sale/index.html. Acesso em: 25 jan. 2023. 

[2] Biden’s top tax rate on capital gains, dividends would be among highest in developed world. Disponível em: https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/21/biden-tax-plan-raises-top-capital-gains-dividend-tax-rate-to-among-highest-in-world.html. Acesso em: 25 jan. 2023.

[3] What is copyright. Disponível em: https://www.copyright.gov/what-is-copyright/#:~:text=U.S.%20copyright%20law%20provides%20copyright,rental%2C%20lease%2C%20or%20lending. Acesso em: 25 jan. 2023.

[4] REGISTRO E CADASTRO DE MÚSICAS. TUDO O QUE VOCÊ PRECISA SABER! Disponível em: https://www.abramus.org.br/noticias/14245/tudo-registro-cadastro-musical/#:~:text=Podem%20ser%20registrados%20arranjos%20musicais,para%20os%20seus%20sucessores%2Fherdeiros. Acesso em: 25 jan. 2023

 

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“If you want to learn more about this topic, contact the author or the managing partner, Dr. Cesar Peduti Filho.”

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Public transportation system in the city of São Paulo suffers a hacker attack which exposes personal data of its users

The SPTrans’s system, responsible for public transportation in the city of São Paulo, Brazil, was invaded by hackers. The knowledge of this security incident took place on December 15th of 2022, and the communication to its data subjects was made from December 23rd of the same year.

 

13 million of users had the following personal data exposed, from the April 2020 data base: name, social name, date of birth, CPF number, RG number, address, telephone number, filiation, PIS number, student registration number, marital status, place of birth, gender, e-mail, as well as login and password for the service portal on the internet.

 

 

Faced with situations like this, the Brazilian General Personal Data Protection Law – Law No. 13.709/2018 (“LGPD”) provides that the controller (responsible for the decisions referring to the personal data processing) must notify the Brazilian National Data Protection Authority (“ANPD”) and the data subjects about the occurrence of an incident that may entail risk or relevant damage to the data subjects (article 48, LGPD), which was fulfilled by SPTrans, that communicated the ANPD, the data subjects affected and the Police, to investigate the attack.

 

As a recommendation, SPTrans asked its users to change the password used to access the service portal on the internet.

 

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Author: Caroline Muniz, Associate Lawyer at Peduti Advogados.

Source: Hacker invade sistema da SPTrans e 13 milhões de usuários do Bilhete Único têm dados expostos

 

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“If you want to learn more about this topic, contact the author or the managing partner, Dr. Cesar Peduti Filho.”

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NFT Creator infringes trademark registration of the italian football team Juventus

An Italian court handed Juventus FC a win in the most recent round of a legal scuffle over non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”). The Rome Court of First Instance, on 20 July 2022, ruled that the unauthorised minting, advertising and sale of NFTs1 can infringe the trade mark rights of the relevant owner.

 

The Rome Court of First Instance granted the Turin-based football club’s bid for a preliminary injunction, barring Binance-hosted Blockeras s.r.l. from offering up NFTs that make use of the Italian club’s trademarks, including the Juventus and “Juve” word marks, as well as the design of its two-star-bearing black-and-white jersey.

 

Juventus filed proceedings against Blockeras accusing them of infringing the club’s registered marks in relation to the Blockeras NFTs which were linked to trading cards featuring former Juventus striker Christian “Bobo” Vieri.

 

 

The player’s image was not questioned, as Bobo Vieri granted image use permission to the creator of the NFTs. However, he failed to obtain authorization to use the Juventus trademark, which was also featured in the creation.

 

Furthermore, the Italian Court understood that NFTs have legal autonomy compared to the images or data associated with them. As a practical consequence, the Court specifies that the injunction granted concerns both digital content, including the player’s image with Juventus trademarks, and the NFTs themselves.

 

The case is a significant ruling in relation to trade mark rights and NFTs. It is the first known judgment by a European court to determine that NFTs which reproduce a third party’s trade marks without authorization from the rights owner, amount to trade mark infringement and may warrant an injunction.

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Author: Bruno Arminio, Associate Lawyer at Peduti Advogados.

Source: Juventus sues NFT-based fantasy soccer hosted on Binance; Old Lady Shows Her Youth with Win in Significant Trade Mark Ruling Concerning NFTS

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“Região de Garça” is recognized as a geographical indication for coffee in Brazil

The Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BPTO) recently published the recognition of “Região de Garça” as its newest appellation of origin to identify coffee of the Coffea arábica species produced in the region. 

 

The region has a long tradition in the production of coffee, with its development being closely intertwined with the production of coffee that is practiced by over 400 families in the area, making the region one of the largest producers of coffee in the State.

 

 

The area covered by the Appellation of Origin is composed by 15 municipalities located in the mid-west of the São Paulo State, that share a centenary history, tradition and culture in the coffee market.

 

The municipalities also share geographical aspects, since they are located in an area covered by the “Planalto de Marilia” and “Serra dos Agudos”, with areas of over 600m of altitude and with temperature between 17,8º and 28,5º.

 

The coffee produced in the area covered by the appellation of origin is destined for the national and international market, being exported to over 20 countries which ads strategical value to the region as one of the main exporters in the state.

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Author: Carla Pinheiro Beisiegel, Associate Lawyer at Peduti Advogados.

Source: INPI reconhece Região de Garça como Indicação Geográfica para café

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Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region recognized the right of the pharmaceutical company to obtain data from Federal Revenue of Brazil of the importers and exporters of substance patented by it

Regarding Law No. 9279/96 (Industrial Property Law), a patent confers on its proprietor the right to prevent third parties from manufacturing, using, offering for sale, selling, or importing for such purposes without his consent: I – a product that is the subject of a patent; II – a process, or product directly obtained by a patented process.

 

Thus, in a trial on October 10, 2022, the 6th Panel of the Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region recognized the right of the pharmaceutical company Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited to obtain data from Federal Revenue of Brazil of the importers and exporters of substance patented by it (Lisdexamphetamine).

 

 

In this case, the patent-holder company claimed its exclusive rights by requesting that the Federal Revenue of Brazil provides the data of any importers and exporters after it heard that the substance it patented could be manufactured, marketed, and imported without its consent.

 

The judgment of the Federal Regional Court of the 1st Region is in line with Brazilian legislation and is an advance in the protection of patent rights.

 

Lawsuit: 1080560-91.2021.4.01.3400

 

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Author: Thaís de Kássia Rodrigues Almeida Penteado, Senior Associate & Head of Litigation at Peduti Advogados.

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Trademark dilution and its types

The dilution phenomenon occurs when a third party uses a mark or trade name in commerce that is sufficiently similar to a famous mark such that the consumer’s perception of it changes, even if the infractor’s mark involves goods or services totally unrelated to those associated with the famous mark.

 

Trademark dilution often results in diverted sales, which is due to the mark’s weakened distinctiveness including the associations and/or reputation connected with it (2002).

Thus, trademark dilution is divided into three types: tarnishment, blurring and adulteration. Tarnishment occurs when the infringing mark portrays the infringed mark in a negative light and uses elements morally repulsed by society in general. It may also happen when the infringer is offering low quality products, hindering the trademark’s owner reputation.

 

Blurring, on the other hand, happens when the distinctiveness of a mark is impaired by association with another similar mark or trade name. Finally, adulteration happens when a third party modifies the basic characteristics of a trade name and/or mark. According to the author, this type of dilution originated after a case involving two American tractor companies.

 

 

The infringer showed, through pejorative propaganda, a deer running away after seeing its competitor’s tractor, alluding to the inert deer in John Deere’s symbol. In this case, the original trademark symbol, which is a static deer, was adulterated and

was shown moving.

 

Cabral (2002) identifies that trademark dilution is an offense to its integrity, allowing companies to pursue actions against third parties who use its mark and/or symbols in a negative way. Although trademark dilution does not negatively affect the owner (e.g. consumer confusion), there still may be long-term consequences. Hence the importance for an organization to protect its trademark distinctiveness.

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Author: Enzo Toyoda Coppola, Junior Associate at Peduti Advogados.

Source: Diluição: uma teoria defensiva ou ofensiva?

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The World Cup approaches: It is time to quick chat about ambush marketing

Ambush marketing can be defined as the attempt to attract attention and publicity during well known events that already holds its official sponsors. The intention is to lead the consumer to believe that the specific mark/company is endorsed by the event’s official organizers, not to mention the “free exposition” through the television! This type of unfair competition is quite common on big scale events, such as the World Cup, Lollapalooza and Rock in Rio.  

 

Every four years FIFA discloses its official sponsors, who invest significant amount of money to expose its trademarks and advertisement during the event with exclusivity (it is estimated that FIFA earned approximately US$ 100 million on sponsorship). The official sponsors hold the right to use the World Cup’s official symbols and to make direct reference to the event in its advertisements. Therefore, it is quite common that both FIFA and the official sponsorships goes to Court before and during the competition to challenge third parties that somehow takes advantage of the World Cup to promote its brands without any investment. 

 

There are two types of ambush marketing: by association and by intrusion. The ambush marketing by association takes places when a non-sponsor company uses the World Cup tradition logo to directly promote its goods, attracting the consumer attention and leading the public to understand that the brand is an official sponsor (status). 

 

 

On the other hand, the ambush marketing by intrusion of the advertising space happens when the non-sponsor uses the event’s space (the stadium, for example) to promote its brand. It is the classic case that happened on 2006 during the World Cup in Germany, when Brazilian player Ronaldinho Gaúcho had to take off a Nike hairband, since the official sponsor of the event was Adidas. It is interest noting that, after this episode, a sportive marketing consulting agency performed a survey that revealed that an expressive number of interviewed declared that the official sponsor was Nike! Another interesting case happened during the World Cup in South Africa, when a group of more than 30 Dutch women dressed all in orange entered in the stadium separately. They later gathered in the stadium, causing FIFA to state that it was an ambush marketing by intrusion planed by Bavaria, even tough the brand Bavaria was not exposed by the group. At the time, Budweiser was the official sponsor (the women were banned from the stadium and two of them were arrested).

 

It is not that non-sponsors cannot address absolutely nothing about the World Cup but shall carefully address the event’s attractivity and magnetism without using symbols or occupying the advertising space.

 

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Author: Rafaella Franco, Associate Lawyer at Peduti Advogados.

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