PETOŠEVIĆ

March 2021

EAPO Launches Pharmaceutical Register

On March 1, 2021, the Eurasian Patent Organization (EAPO) launched the EAPO Pharmaceutical Register, a free, open access database containing information on Eurasian active pharmaceutical ingredient patents that have been assigned International Nonproprietary Names (INNs).

The Register provides up-to-date information, in Russian, on the legal status of these patents, as well as information on patent term extensions, licensing agreements and medicinal products registered in the EAPO member states – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.

The Pharmaceutical Register has been formed on the basis of the EAPO's own sources of information, a number of external specialized databases, as well as information provided by the owners of Eurasian patents.

Patent holders may submit an application to include their patents in the Register. The application must relate to Eurasian patents covering pharmacologically active products (chemical compounds, including those described by the same structural formula, biotechnological products, compositions and combinations), production methods and medical uses of these products. The application should contain the following information:

• Eurasian patent number;
• INN;
• Identification of claims relating to a pharmacologically active product;
• Information about relevant medicinal products registered in the EAPO member states;
• Country where the registration of the medicinal product was obtained;
• Trade name of the medicinal product;
• Number, date, validity period, and holder of the state registration of the medicinal product; and
• Additional materials helping to compare the patented substance with the INN specified in the application.

The EAPO’s initiative was enthusiastically supported by the Association of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers of the Eurasian Economic Union and the Association of International Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (AIPM). Experts believe that the Register will help in simplifying the process of registration of generic drugs, stimulate development in the pharmaceutical industry and have a positive impact on the investment climate in the EAEU countries.

Prepared by: Natalia Osipenko and Taras Manolov

For more information, please contact Natalia Osipenko or Taras Manolov.

Uzbekistan Introduces Measures to Improve IPR Protection System

On January 28, 2021, the President of Uzbekistan issued the Resolution “On Measures to Improve the Intellectual Property Protection System”, introducing numerous changes in the field of intellectual property.

Most importantly, starting from April 1, 2021, all legal entities and individuals willing to register their trademarks and service marks will be entitled to do so. Currently, trademarks can only be registered in the name of a legal or natural person carrying out entrepreneurial activity.

Also starting from April 1, 2021, the Uzbek IPO will adopt the expedited examination procedure, but it remains to be seen how long the procedure will take under the Resolution as the document does not indicate this time frame. The procedure, including formal and substantive examinations, currently takes at least eight months for trademarks and up to five years for patents.

The Uzbek IPO can now appoint outsourced examiners, which can also lead to a faster examination procedure, although possibly of a lower quality, because it usually takes three to five years for an examiner to obtain significant practical experience.

By the end of March 2021, the Supreme Court, the Ministry of Justice and the Antimonopoly Committee will develop a training program for judges in the field of intellectual property and introduce a training system by the end of 2021.

IP Protection Centers have also been created in each of Uzbekistan’s 12 regions. The Centers are intended to participate in a systematic fight against the sale of counterfeits by issuing infringement notices and administrative actions. They will also provide field support in the registration of IP rights.

The Resolution also foresees important activities in the field of IP protection to be implemented in 2021 and 2022, including the following:

• By April 10, 2021 – developing a number of draft laws providing for more severe administrative liability for trademark and copyright infringement, introducing compensation for trademark infringement by legal entities ranging from EUR 2,120 (USD 2,500) to EUR 4,240 (USD 5,000), as well as criminal liability for trademark and copyright infringement;

• By April 20, 2021 – taking measures to accede to:
  • Marrakesh Treaty t Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired or Otherwise Print Disabled;
  • Singapre Treaty on the Law of Trademarks;
  • Geneva Act f the Hague Agreement Concerning the International Registration of Industrial Designs; and
  • Internatinal Convention for the Protection of Performers, Producers of Phonograms and Broadcasting Organizations (Rome Convention);

• By June 15, 2021 – developing a draft bylaw on the calculation and compensation of damages for the loss of profit caused by IPR infringement;

• By August 1, 2021 – introducing mechanisms to improve cooperation among IP protection authorities, including the Uzbek IPO, State Tax Committee, State Customs Committee, Antimonopoly Committee and Consumer Protection Agency;

• By December 15, 2021 – developing a national IP strategy in cooperation with WIPO; and

• By September 1, 2022 – developing an Intellectual Property Code; intellectual property is currently addressed in the Uzbek Civil Code.

By: Djakhangir Aripov and Gulandom Haydarova

For more information, please contact Djakhangir Aripov at our Uzbekistan office. 

Russian Trademark and Design Filing Activity Grows in 2019

The World Intellectual Property Organization’s (WIPO) latest annual World Intellectual Property Indicators (WIPI) report for 2020, which collects and analyzes IP data from 2019 from around 150 national and regional intellectual property offices around the world, notes that while the number of patent applications in Russia decreased by 6.4%, the country’s trademark filing activity (measured in application class counts) increased by 16.5% compared to 2018, with the double-digit growth being overwhelmingly driven by resident filing activity.

In fact, the Russian IPO accounted for 5.2% of the annual increase in global trademark filing activity. Russia also moved up one spot, from 9^th to 8^th, on the list of top 20 offices in 2019 by trademark filing activity. The Russian IPO was also among only three offices in the world which experienced double-digit growth in industrial design applications – they grew by 22% compared to 2018.

In 2019, trademark and industrial design filing activity increased globally by 5.9% and 1.3%, respectively. Global patent applications declined 3%, for the first time in a decade, driven by a drop in filings in China. Excluding China, global patent filings rose 2.3% – the highest growth rate in years.

In March of this year, WIPO published its preliminary statistics for 2020. According to these figures, international (PCT) patent fillings increased in 2020, despite the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, international trademark applications dipped slightly, while a substantial decrease was noted for international industrial design applications.

Prepared by: Djurdja Krivokapić

For more information, please contact russia@petosevic.com.

Ukrainian Cyber Police Shut Down Illegal Streaming Service

Ukraine’s cyber police unit has recently shut down an unauthorized website that was infringing the copyright of four foreign film companies by illegally streaming movies and TV series. The officials seized computers and other equipment used to operate the website during a raid in the city of Zaporizhzhia in southeastern Ukraine.

A local resident had created and administered the streaming service by setting up a software module on his computer which collected data from third-party resources, automatically filling the website with video content without the right holders’ authorization. The operator also made profits by running advertisements on the website.

The pre-trial investigation is ongoing. The maximum penalty that the offender can face is up to two years in prison.

Prepared by: Valentyna Martynenko

For more information, please contact ukraine@petosevic.com.

Kazakh Officials Shut Down Production of Fake Spirits

Kazakhstan’s Financial Monitoring Agency and the State Revenue Committee officials have recently shut down the production of counterfeit alcohol in the Almaty region in southestern Kazakhstan.

During the raid of the production plant, the authorities discovered more than 170,000 bottles of vodka infringing several trademarks and featuring fake excise stamps.

Between January and September 2020, 25 illegal workshops for counterfeit spirit production and 320,000 liters of counterfeit alcoholic beverages were seized in Kazakhstan.

Prepared by: Dayana Auezova

For more information, please contact kazakhstan@petosevic.com.

Hungarian Officials Detain Fake Electronic Devices

The Hungarian National Tax and Customs Administration (NTCA) officials in Zala county in southwestern Hungary recently detained more than 13,000 electronic devices and accessories infringing several trademarks, including Apple®, Huawei®, LG® and Google®.

The detained goods, including computers, tablets, smartphones, phone cases, watches, smart watches and headsets, are estimated to be worth approximately EUR 3.6 million (USD 4.3 million).

Prepared by: Erika Farkas

For more information, please contact hungary@petosevic.com.

Romanian Customs Detain Fake Perfumes, Headphones

On February 25, 2021, the Romanian customs officials at the port of Constanta in eastern Romania detained 1,330 bottles of perfume believed to infringe several trademarks, including Carolina Herrera® and Paco Rabanne®, as well as 990 pairs of headphones believed to infringe the Apple® trademark.

The goods, estimated to be worth approximately EUR 231,000 (USD 275,000), were discovered during the inspection of a container arriving from China and were intended for a trading company in the capital of Bucharest.

Prepared by: Bogdan Neagoe

For more information, please contact romania@petosevic.com.

Serbian Customs Detain Fake Apparel

On February 25, 2021, Serbian customs officials at the Gradina border crossing point with Bulgaria detained more than 6,000 items of men’s, women’s and children’s apparel believed to infringe numerous trademarks, including Nike®, Adidas®, Guess®, Tommy Hilfiger®, Hugo Boss®, Louis Vuitton® and Zara®.

The clothing items, including jackets, vests, sweatpants and sweatshirts, are estimated to be worth approximately EUR 10,000 (USD 11,800). The goods were discovered during the inspection of a truck travelling from Turkey to Serbia.

Prepared by: Djurdja Krivokapić

For more information, please contact serbia@petosevic.com.

PETOŠEVIĆ Highly Ranked in Chambers & Partners Guide

The 2021 Chambers & Partners Guide for Europe, one of the top publications on legal industry rankings, recently recognized PETOŠEVIĆ offices and practitioners in three jurisdictions.

PETOŠEVIĆ was ranked as follows:

Serbia — Intellectual Property — Band 1
Montenegro — Corporate/Commercial — Band 3
North Macedonia — Intellectual Property — Spotlight Table
 

Regional Manager for Western Balkans Mihajlo Zatezalo was recognized as an Eminent Practitioner in Serbia.

For more information and to read testimonials about PETOŠEVIĆ and our team, please visit our Rankings page.