In August 2016 in the USA, Solid Oak Sketches LLC sued 2K Games, Inc and Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. on the basis of copyright infringement.

The Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) has assured business owners that a company can be registered and trade without a company name, provided that the entity is registered with the commission and has been issued with a unique number. Business owners can also, in theory, obtain a tax number from the South African Revenue Service using the registered number whilst awaiting confirmation from the CIPC that one of their requested names is available to be recorded as the company's

South Africa is in a fortunate position in developing our trade mark case law as we can adopt developments in Europe which suit us and discard those which don’t.

The Republic of Tunisia deposited its Instrument of Accession to the Geneva Act of the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs on 13 March 2012.

About 30% of consumers are unknowingly buying fake goods when making online purchases, according to the Global Online Shopping Survey.

The Advertising Standards Authority ("ASA") has ruled that retailer Woolworths must stop using the phrase GOOD OLD FASHIONED as it imitates beverage manufacturer’s "GOOD OLD FASHIONED SOFT DRINKS" advertising slogan.

A discussion on the impact of baby food regulation on the trademark owners in South Africa.

Two related United States Bills were recently the topics of much controversy.

We have previously reported on the Malawian Trademarks Bill 2017. This bill officially became law on 1 October 2018, in the form of the Trademarks Act, 2 of 2018 (the Act)

Squabbling over the legal right to the Gap brand in South Africa and who owns the brands, have at last been settled between the Durban based clothing manufacturer, Kingsgate Clothing and Gap Inc after years of dispute.

In recent news, the TAC (Treatment Action Campaign) has called on government to revise the Patents Act to reduce the patent protection available to pharmaceutical inventions, which the organisation believes is responsible for the high cost of medicines and a delay in the availability of generic medicines.

Major sports are big business and vast sums of money are involved in staging sport events.

Defining what constitutes a trade mark can be difficult, especially when dealing with unusual trade marks such as single colours, sounds and scents, which explains the need for specialist trade mark attorneys.

Trademark rights can be divided into two categories, namely statutory rights and rights afforded by common law.

Plant breeders' rights (PBRs), rights granted to the breeders of new varieties of plants, give them exclusive control over the propagating material, seeds, cuttings, divisions and tissue culture and harvested material, such as cut flowers, fruit and foliage of a new variety of plant for a number of years.

The long awaited Botswana Industrial Property Act no. 8 of 2010 finally came into force on 31 August 2012 following the publication of "Statutory Instrument No 69 of 2012" citing it’s commencement date.

When choosing a trade mark businesses often prefer descriptive marks that inform consumers about the nature or purpose of a product.

The Netherlands Antilles, an autonomous Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, was dissolved on 10 October 2010.

Cookery has become one of the most popular past times of the last few years.

Recent OAPI trade mark opposition judgments highlight the fact that the system works.