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Celebrities and influencers have now become 'brands' in their own right, but building a brand around your name and personality does not come without risks.

This year's INTA Annual Meeting in Atlanta (18–22 May) promises to be packed with fascinating discussions. The sessions scheduled at the conference remind us how technology is increasingly so important for trademark practice, as Luke Portnow explains.

In response to recent uncertainty around the need for a UK address for service (AFS) for UK trademarks and designs, the UKIPO issued a Tribunal Practice Notice on 25 January 2023. Vanessa Harrow sets out the changes and offers practical advice for affected rights holders.

Read answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about when a UK address for service is required for UK trademarks and designs.

The short answer is ‘yes’, you can own a fictional character, says UK Trademark Attorney Luke Portnow, and this summer the UK saw a particularly interesting case law development in copyright protection. 

On 15 September 2022, our experts discussed best practices for protecting 'non-traditional' trademarks in an increasingly innovative world. Register for our webinar recording to find out more.

Model and socialite Hailey Bieber is just one of a long list of celebrities to have registered trademarks to maximise the brand and business opportunities that can come with fame. But fame alone is not enough to guarantee a straightforward trademark registration.

Choosing a ‘strong’ brand name for your business can be a challenging undertaking. Depending on your market and industry, there is a risk that your preferred name will have already been registered as a trademark by a third party. But what if you choose a similar logo?

Can you own the copyright to a song title? That’s the question at the heart of the recent dispute over Mariah Carey’s seasonal chart topper 'All I Want for Christmas is You'.

Latest development at the EPO is a further example of the challenges that applicants, particularly from the US, face when ensuring valid priority claims for European Patent (EP) applications, as Dr Oliver Harris explains. 

Music app Spotify has successfully opposed the registration of the trademark ‘Potify’ by marijuana app Potify on the grounds of dilution by blurring and tarnishment. Julia Schefman examines the US Trademark Trial and Appeal Board ruling and asks whether the outcome would have been any different under EU law. 

Counterfeit activity is a threat to all modern businesses, affecting their profits, their reputation and, in some cases, the safety of their consumers. This white paper sets out five steps to success when targeting the trade in fakes, and provides answers to some frequently asked questions