GCC TM Law and its Implementing Regulations Come into Force in KSA

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1 October 2016 Member States Close Assemblies Meetings, to Open Two New WIPO Offices in Africa Page 2 ARIPO Signs MoU with EUIPO Page 4 When & Where to Meet AGIP Professionals Page 5 GCC TM Law and its Implementing Regulations Come into Force in KSA RIYADH - The Saudi Trade Mark Office has adopted the GCC Trademark Law and its Implementing Regulations that came into force as of September 29, Under the new Law, the following changes have been implemented in Saudi Arabia: The official fees for filing complaints have been increased to USD 267 and the deadline has been shortened from 60 days to 30 days. The official fees for opposing published trademarks have been increased to USD 534 and the deadline has been shortened from 90 days to 60 days. A deadline for submitting a counter-opposition has been set for 60 days from the notification date. The deadline for appealing complaints has been extended to 60 days, while the deadline for appealing oppositions remained the same (30 days). A new USD 267 official fee has been imposed for each hearing session before the Committee. For further details and inquiries on the new Trademark Law, please contact TAG-Legal office in KSA at: ksa@tag-legal.com 1

2 Member States Close Assemblies Meetings, to Open Two New WIPO Offices in Africa I congratulate and thank member states for their engagement and decisions that will help WIPO increase its activities worldwide as intellectual property plays an increasingly important role in the global economy, said WIPO Director General Francis Gurry. GENEVA - Member states agreed to expand a network of overseas offices that promote WIPO services and cooperation around the world, ending the 2016 Assemblies meetings by approving new external offices in Algeria and Nigeria while agreeing to continue discussions on the opening four other offices by the end of According to WIPO, member states also took note of a report by the Chair of the Coordination Committee, the governing body responsible for staff matters, to end their discussions on the UN s Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) investigation into allegations against the Director General. They also approved recommendations made by the Coordination Committee related to reviewing and strengthening internal procedures relating to procurement, internal oversight, and whistle-blower protections. Convening its inaugural session, the Marrakesh Assembly met to discuss implementation of the books for blind Marrakesh Treaty that came into effect on September 30, Botswana, Sri Lanka and Liberia joined the treaty during the Assemblies meetings, bringing its membership to 25. The Assembly was chaired by Brazil s Minister of Culture Marcelo Calero. Closing the session, the Chair of the General Assembly, Ambassador Jānis Kārkliņš, who is also the Permanent Representative of Latvia to the United Nations and other International Organizations in Geneva, also thanked delegates for their engagement and hard work and welcomed the positive results achieved during the session. Among the results achieved, delegates in the respective Assemblies (following agenda order): Took note of the report by the WIPO Independent Advisory Oversight Committee (IAOC); Adopted a revised internal oversight charter, which clarifies and codifies decision-making processes, as well as the roles for the Chairs of the General Assembly and Coordination Committee and the IAOC, with respect to the handling of misconduct allegations concerning staff at the Director General, Deputy and Assistant Director General levels; Took note of the Annual Report by the Acting Director of the Internal Oversight Division (IOD) ; Endorsed the appointment of the new Director of IOD, Mr. Rajesh Singh; Took note of WIPO s positive financial results and the unqualified audit report for 2015, the program performance report and the financial management report for the biennium , the Director General s proposed Medium Term Strategic Plan and agreed on the opening of external offices in 2

3 Algeria and Nigeria. These offices will join a network that includes WIPO offices in Brazil, China, Japan, Russia and Singapore; Took note of the report of the Standing Committee on Copyright and Related Rights (SCCR) and directed it to continue work on protection of broadcasting organizations, limitations and exceptions for libraries and archives, and limitations and exceptions for educational and research institutions and persons with other disabilities; Took note of the report of the Standing Committee on the Law of Patents (SCP) during the biennium to date and also took note of the future work that will take place at the next session in December; Took note of the report of the Standing Committee on the Law of Trademarks, Industrial Designs and Geographical Indications (SCT); Decided that the 2017 General Assembly will continue to consider the convening of a diplomatic conference for the adoption of a design law treaty to develop simplified standards for industrial design registration procedures to take place at the end of the first half of 2018; Took note of the report of the Committee on Development and Intellectual Property (CDIP) and Review of the Implementation of the Development Agenda Recommendations; Took note of a report on the work so far in 2016 of the WIPO Intergovernmental Committee on Intellectual Property and Genetic Resources, Traditional Knowledge and Folklore (the IGC); Took note of the report of the Committee on WIPO Standards, including the adoption of two new standards: For the presentation of the electronic data of nucleotide and amino acid sequence listing as an integral part of a patent application; and concerning technical requirements for an electronic management of a sound mark for trademark registration; Took note of the report of the Advisory Committee on Enforcement (ACE), which serves as a forum for member states to exchange experiences on IP enforcement and building respect for IP; Appointed the Turkish Patent Institute as an International Searching and Preliminary Examining Authority under the Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT); Adopted a set of amendments to the PCT Regulations to provide more flexibility for applicants to request a supplementary international search and also to clarify and simplify certain provisions; Took a decision that will result in the sole application of the Madrid Protocol of 1989 as the legal basis for the Madrid System, considerably simplifying the Madrid system by applying the same set of rules to all users who, in addition, will benefit from increased flexibilities introduced by the Madrid Protocol to file applications and manage registrations; Adopted amendments to the Hague Common Regulations ensuring that, in line with its continued expansion and growing reliance on electronic communications, the Hague System remained efficient and effective; Agreed that Lisbon Union members would make subventions for the Lisbon System in the current biennium to eliminate the projected biennial deficit of the Union, with commitments totaling more than CHF 1 million. Lisbon Union members also decided to emphasize promotional activities for the Lisbon System and to continue considering proposals for achieving its long-term financial sustainability, including the establishment of a contribution system and monitoring of the fee schedule; Noted developments in the WIPO Arbitration and Mediation Center s provision of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) services, including assistance requested by certain intellectual property offices in offering ADR options for stakeholders, as well as increased demand for WIPO domain name dispute resolution; 3

4 Adopted rules of procedure for the Marrakesh Assembly and took note of the information reported by the Secretariat on the status of the Marrakesh Treaty; Endorsed the Annual Report on Human Resources and noted the implementation of regulatory, policy and contractual reforms as well as progress on the Organization s Human Resources Strategy; Noted the Report on Geographical Distribution and expressed support for the Secretariat s outreach efforts and other measures to promote and enhance the diversity of applicants for WIPO jobs, while agreeing that member states will hold further consultations on the issue of geographical distribution; Approved a number of amendments to the Staff Regulations and Rules, largely concerning implementation of changes to the compensation package for staff in the Professional and higher categories following the approval of these adjustments by the United Nations General Assembly in December 2015, and requested the Secretariat to develop a comprehensive staff mobility policy for review in WIPO member states and other stakeholders organized a series of events during the WIPO Assemblies meetings, including those by Algeria, Brazil, Hungary, Slovakia, South Africa, Turkey and others. ARIPO Signs MoU with EUIPO (Trade Marks and Designs) [OHIM] -, which was first entered into on June 8, 1999 and was further reviewed and extended in ZIMBABWE - The African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO) and the European Union Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on mechanisms for bilateral cooperation in activities related to trademarks and industrial designs as well as enforcement, a press release by ARIPO. The 5 year agreement renews the cooperation between ARIPO and the EUIPO - formerly Office for Harmonization in the Internal Market This agreement calls for the two parties to cooperate on several areas that include; the publication of trade mark and industrial design data on EUIPO online information and classification systems, namely, TMview, DesignView, TMclass and Designclass; on activities concerning harmonization of trade mark and design examination practices and on awareness raising activities, such as seminars on the protection of trademarks and designs and also on enforcement related matters. The Offices also agreed to cooperate on training programs including joint seminars or workshops and other training initiatives. The Offices will hold annual meetings of experts to discuss major pending issues in the field of trade mark and design. Furthermore, there shall be cooperation in the development and expansion of IT, automation 4

5 and modernization schemes as well as in the exchange of statistical data regarding trademarks and designs. Additionally, there shall be second opportunities to either office of examiners or other staff as may be mutually agreed. The parties also agreed that the EUIPO may consider exporting and sharing with ARIPO the EUIPO-developed Similarity Tool, Harmonized Database and the CESTO Examination Tool. They also agreed to cooperate in other areas like Quality / ISO certification, setting up of IP economic-related studies, such as the EUIPO/ EPO study on IP intensive industries and their contribution to economic performance and employment. On the topical issue of enforcement, the Offices will exchange information on their respective IP enforcement related activities and may identify areas for developing common initiatives. When & Where to Meet AGIP Professionals Who Event Where When Charles Shaban (AGIP Executive Director) Dima Naber (Counsel, Business Development Director) Motasem Abu-Ghazaleh (National Marketing Executive Director) INTA Leadership Hollywood, Florida November This Bulletin is published by the Editorial Department of 2016 Reproduction is permitted provided that the source is acknowledged. For inquiries: agip@agip.com Mrs. Iman Salameh 5

6 Publications Second Updated Version of TAG-ICT Dictionary Issued AMMAN - Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization (TAG-Org) has issued the second updated version of TAG-ICT Dictionary, after updating its input and inserting a new set of terms used in daily life, due to the fact that past months witnessed the launch of a large number of concepts, terms, technologies, application and protocols of communication. HE Dr. Talal Abu-Ghazaleh, TAG-Org chairman, said in the dictionary introduction that ICT plays a significant role in our life, and helps our society change into a Knowledge society. He added that the contribution value of individuals or groups is measured by the contributions produced by thought and innovation. For example, it has been easy and necessary to teach the new generation throughout all stages, using electronic means. Dr. Abu-Ghazaleh reiterated his intention to continue updating and developing the dictionaries issued by TAG-Org which are, in addition to TAG-ICT Dictionary: Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Intellectual Property Dictionary, TAG Dictionary of Legal Terms, TAG Accountancy and Business Dictionary, Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Dictionary of Patents and Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Collocations Dictionary. He also explained that these publications aim at enriching the Arabic language references, and contribute to knowledge dissemination amongst students and all business sectors, through specialized scientific and professional publications. 6

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8 JORDAN Amman 26, Prince Shaker bin Zaid Street, Shmeisani, Amman P.O.Box: , Amman 11192, Jordan Tel.: ( ) Fax: ( ) KUWAIT Kuwait Souk Al Kabir Building, 9 th Floor, Block A, Fahed Al Salem Street, Kuwait P.O.Box: 4729, Safat 13048, State of Kuwait Tel.: (00965) Fax: (00965) kuwait@agip.com LEBANON Beirut Sanayeh, Anis Tabbara Street, Halabi Bldg. - 1 st Floor, Beirut P.O.Box: Beirut, Lebanon Tel.: ( ) Fax: ( ) lebanon@agip.com LIBYA AGIP Building No. 26, Prince Shaker bin Zaid Street, Shmeisani, Amman P.O. Box: , Amman 11192, Jordan Telephone: ( ) Fax: ( ) libya@agip.com MOROCCO Casablanca ESPACE PORTE D ANFA, No. 3 Rue Bab Mansour Casablanca 20050, Kingdom of Morocco P.O.Box: Casa El Hank, Kingdom of Morocco Tel.: ( ) /21/26 Fax: ( ) morocco@agip.com OMAN Muscat Al-Rumailah Building, 2 nd Floor, Office 22, Watiyah, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman P. O.Box: 2366, Postal Code 112 Ruwi, Muscat, Sultanate of Oman Tel : / / Fax: oman@agip.com PAKISTAN Karachi Anum Empire 604, 6 th Floor, Block 7/8, Shara-e-Faisal, Karachi, Pakistan P.O.Box: Karachi, Pakistan Tel: ( ) /4 Fax: ( ) /6 pakistan@agip.com PALESTINE Gaza Al-Quds Street, Ansar Square, Awkaf Building, 2 nd floor, Apartment No. 8+9, Southern Rimal, Gaza, Palestine. P.O.Box: 505 Gaza City, Gaza Strip Tel: ( ) Fax: ( ) gaza@agip.com Ramallah Green Tower Building, Al-Nuzha Street, near Ramallah Public Library P.O.Box: 3800 Al-Beerah, Ramallah, The West Bank Tel: ( ) Fax: ( ) westbank@agip.com QATAR Doha T M P Agents Crown Plaza Doha Business Park Building E, 5 th Floor, Airport Road P.O. Box: 2620 Doha Qatar Tel: ( ) Fax: ( ) qatar@agip.com RUSSIA Moscow Nikulinskaya St., Building 31, 1 st floor. P.O. Box: , Moscow, Russian Federation Telephone: International: +7 (495) Local: 8 (495) (917) Fax: +7 (495) russia@agip.com SAUDI ARABIA Riyadh King Fahd Road - Olaya District - Talal Abu-Ghazaleh Organization (TAG-Org) P.O.Box: 9767, Riyadh 11423, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Tel: ( ) Fax: ( ) ksa@agip.com 8

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