intellectual property

Culture news

What a piece of art is a sandal? Birkenstock in legal German battle

Can sandals be art? Birkenstock says yes, but a German court says no.

21/02/2025

Europe News

‘Russian warship, go f*** yourself’ can’t be trademarked: EU court

The slogan uttered by a Ukrainian border guard on Snake Island has become a symbol of defiance against Russian aggression – but it’s more political than commercial, the EU judges said.

13/11/2024

Business

Mbappé better than Messi and Ronaldo... in number of EU trademarks

Mbappé owns seven EU trademarks, including his famous cross-armed pose, in comparison to six apiece for Messi and Ronaldo.

04/03/2024

Europe Decoded

Exclusive: Fraud office handling complaints over EU agency jobs

Two complaints made over past year cover several appointments, alleging irregularities in pre-selection, bias, nepotism and graft.

23/02/2024

Tech News

Can AI companies legally mine the Internet for training content?

Have AI companies already won on copyright issues? Some experts say they may have, though it may be decided on a case-by-case basis.

21/02/2024

Food and Drink

Cheese wars: Président wins the Camembert skirmish

In the latest Camembert skirmish, the international company Lactalis and its Président brand has emerged victorious.

26/10/2022

Food and Drink

Feta cheese is Greek, EU's top court tells Denmark

The European Union's top court has ruled against Denmark and says the country has mislabelled white cheese as "feta".

14/07/2022

Culture news

Denmark misusing 'feta' name on cheese exports, says EU court adviser

‘Feta’ can only be used only for cheese originating in the specified geographical area in Greece and complying with the relevant product specification."

18/03/2022

France

Google agrees new deal to pay French publishers for news content

The copyright dispute between Big Tech and newspapers in France has raged for more than two years.

03/03/2022

Europe News

EU to support targeted patent waiver on COVID vaccines, say sources

The waiver could allow developing countries to manufacture their own COVID vaccines.

26/11/2021

Tech News

France fines Google €500 million in copyright row with news publishers

Google has two months to suggest ways to compensate news agencies and other publishers for using their content or face additional fines.

13/07/2021

India

It's crucial world leaders break the monopoly on COVID vaccines | View

"While it's true that an intellectual property waiver alone won’t fix shortages, it will be a crucial first step in ramping up the dispensation of vaccines."

07/06/2021

Vatican

Vatican issues a street art stamp, ends up getting sued

The Vatican is home to some of the greatest artworks ever made, and it vigorously enforces its copyright. But now the tables have turned, and the Vatican stands accused of violating the intellectual property rights of a street artist.

26/05/2021

World News

What is the argument against lifting COVID vaccine patents?

The US has backed plans to waive intellectual property rights on COVID-19 vaccines, but the idea faces stiff opposition.

06/05/2021

World News

EU nations divided over lifting COVID-19 vaccine patents

Commission president von der Leyen said the bloc would discuss the move, but German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s office spoke out against it.

06/05/2021

Switzerland

Euroviews. Intellectual property is becoming politicised. That’s why I am a candidate to run WIPO ǀ View

On 4 March, do not vote by default for a candidate for political reasons. Vote for the continued survival of IP. And choose the best candidate who can enhance the organisation and best serve its member states.

02/03/2020