Decking the hall with Tom and Jerry? You better watch out!

Ah Christmas! The season of self administered force-feeding, countless wallet burning sales and massive competitions between shopping malls to see who can out-wow each other with their seasonal decorations.

Not wanting to miss out on spreading some festive cheer, the owner of a serviced apartment building in Penang recently decided to duke it out with the malls by decking out the front of its building with Christmas decorations which included two large figures of Tom and Jerry.

However, what would have been a place of pilgrimage for the selfie magi quickly became a cautionary tale of Dickensian proportion. For out of the bitter cold came the representatives of Warner Bros. (owner of Tom and Jerry) and their sternly worded Cease and Desist. And just like that, the famous cat and mouse duo was taken down, faster than you can say 'Hickory Dickory Dock'.

So does this mean you really cannot add some pizzazz to your mamak by putting up some Norwich football club memorabilia, or place life-sized cardboard figures of Anna and Elsa before locking the office AC at subzero temperatures and making off with the remote controller?

Well generally, personal use of copyrighted works is not considered to be infringing especially if they are licensed merchandise. So yes, the signed poster of the Hoff in his budgie smuggler can stay on your living room wall (whether it should is another matter all together). What can get you into trouble is if you nick said poster off www.carpetchestedhunks.com and post it all over your kopitiam in order to attract more auntie clienteles. Yes, even if you’re not charging the ladies (or gentlemen) RM 10 per selfie!

Now, if you're not too sure about the legality of that BTS shrine in your place of business, here are a few question to ask yourself. Are the merch legit and not from some dodgy pasar malam uncle? If your answer is yes, then good for you! You've just earned yourself some Santa brownie points. But wait! We're not in the clear just yet. Second question. Does the use of these licensed merchandise make it look like your business is endorsed by the celebrities when in actual fact BTS has nothing to do with your teh-tarik jantan? If the answer is also 'yes', then you're likely to still get a lump of coal from Santa and a Cease and Desist from the lawyers.

Still unsure? Why don't you give us a holler? Our Santa's little helpers will be more than happy to tell you if you've been naughty or nice.

#infringement #copyright

50% Off Our Trademark, Design and Copyright Fees

'Tis the Season of Giving! And as a little gift, we are taking 50% off our trademark, design and copyright fees in Malaysia for the first 5 Malaysian Startups to email us at info@gordianip.com

Terms and Conditions: This offer is available to Malaysian Startups (in business for <3 years) only. It is not inclusive of the official fees payable to the IP office. And we reserve the rights to modify, suspend, or terminate the offer without prior notice. Offer ends 31 December 2019.

#Startup #csr #branding #design #copyright #Malaysia #christmas

Madrid: The Double Edged Sword

Ah the Internet! Arguably mankind's greatest invention. It's come such a long way too. Just a couple of decades ago, who could've imagined that through copper, fibre and radio-waves, the world can literally be brought to your doorsteps. Shopping, songs, movies, TV series, books... all a mere click away. Equally, back then, no one (save for a few Cyber-Nostradamuses) could see the danger that this ethereal behemoth would bring. With our whole life stored in bits and bytes, all we have and all we are could be taken away by the marauding pirates of the cyber-seas, with just a few clever lines of codes and an unsuspecting click. Yes, the double edged sword cuts both ways!

On 27 December 2019, the Madrid System is coming into force in Malaysia. And with it, protecting your trademark globally is just an application away. Through the Madrid System, one application can cover up to 121 countries in the world. But beware! Much like the internet, this application superhighway goes both ways. For although it opens up the world to Malaysian businesses, it also opens up Malaysia to the world. For a foreign company with hegemonic intentions, or worse, a trademark squatter (an extortionist who registers trademarks just to sell them back to the owners), your precious trademark is just a tick box away.

Sure! There are ways to get your trademark back. But because the law usually sees the person who has registered a trademark as its rightful owner, anyone who says otherwise will have to fight an uphill legal battle to reclaim the rights to his trademark from the guy who has beaten you the punch. So if your trademark is registered by someone else, you will have to fork out tens or even hundreds of thousands to hopefully get it back. Or... you can walkaway, tail between your legs and rebrand!

Alas, in this game of trademark, there's no consolation for coming second. And with Madrid around the corner, you better move fast to secure your trademark before it belongs to someone else! Like what the good doctor says, better be safe now then to deal with the puking and pooping mess a few months down the road.

#IPlitigation #madridprotocol #Malaysia #InternationalTrademark #Trademark #branding