Europe Office Tackles Hot Topics in First Quarter 2018 - International Trademark Association

Illicit Trade Roundtables in Santiago, Chile

On January 4, INTA’s Latin America & the Caribbean Representative Office was invited to participate in an illicit trade roundtable hosted by the Illicit Trade Observatory (Observatorio del Comercio Ilícito) pertaining to the Chilean National Chamber of Commerce (CNC).

This activity was composed of two separate roundtables: the first one, a policy dialogue among CNC authorities, top executives from selected companies and non-profit organizations, as well as officials representing the Chilean National Customs Service (SNA), the National Consumer Protection Service, the National Chilean IP Office, and the Municipality of Santiago, dealt with different action plans to combat illicit trade throughout Chile’s main urban centers beginning in 2018. The second roundtable was primarily an education-focused discussion, involving different experiences from local and international stakeholders on how to promote consumer awareness about the dangers of illicit trade activities.

Association Participates in National Product Safety Roundtable

In order to continue strengthening their roles in safeguarding the health and safety of consumers and society at large, the Chilean National Customs Service (SNA) and the National Consumer Protection Service (SERNAC) hosted a National Product Safety Roundtable on January 8 in Valparaíso, Chile.

This initiative, traditionally held several times a year since 2011, seeks to guide and coordinate the actions, faculties, and functions of different public bodies in relation to a wide range of human health and safety concerns, from electronic commerce to trafficking of counterfeit medicines.

The roundtable was chaired by Mirta Letelier, National Director of the SNA Intellectual Property and Public Health Integrated Inspection Program and was attended by officials from SERNAC. the Public Health Institute (ISP), the General Directorate of International Economic Relations of Chile, ProChile (Chilean Exports Promotion Agency), and the Superintendence of Gas and Electricity.

This roundtable, which will take place again during 2018, represents one step forward for INTA’s close collaboration with Chilean authorities to address the protection of consumers against hazardous and fraudulent imitations of legitimate products and services, as previously addressed during the successful “Methods for Detecting Counterfeit Goods and Border Control Challenges” seminar co-hosted by the SNA and INTA in October 2017.

Seminar on Famous and Well-Known Marks, Brand Restriction, and Big Data

INTA’s Latin America & the Caribbean Representative Office, on the initiative of Famous and Well-Known Marks Committee-Latin America Subcommittee chair, Nidia Osorio (BM Abogados), and with the support of the Superintendence of Industry and Commerce, is organizing a seminar in BogotÁ, Colombia, on February 28 titled “The Risk of Well-Known Marks Becoming Generic, Brand Restriction and Big Data in Colombia.”

This seminar, aimed at Colombian business and IP specialists, seeks to assess how the protection of famous and well-known marks is currently being developed in Colombia and abroad by emphasizing the risk of such marks becoming generic/genericized, as well as issues involving product safety, brand restrictions, and the impact of big data on trademarks and brands. Confirmed speakers include the Colombian Deputy Superintendent for IP Matters, the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia, Nutresa, big data academics, and brand representatives from major Colombian industrial businesses.

INTA’s Latin America & the Caribbean Representative Office, based in Santiago, Chile, represents the Association’s 821 members across the region. Working in collaboration with staff at INTA’s headquarters in New York City, the Latin America & the Caribbean Representative Office leads the Association’s policy, membership, marketing, and communications initiatives throughout this region. To learn more about INTA’s activities in Latin America and the Caribbean, please contact INTA Chief Representative Officer of the Latin America & the Caribbean Office José Luis Londoño at [email protected].

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