9/28/2009
New Member! CIPC
Canadian Intellectual Property Council has joined the GACG network as a member.
9/10/2009
The Plagiarius-competition is announced for the 34th time
Action Plagiarius grants this negative award at the annual "Ambiente", the world's largest consumer goods trade fair, during an international press conference. The award is given to those manufacturers and distributors whom the jury has found guilty of making or selling "the most flagrant" (design) imitations.
8/27/2009
The ACTA negotiations
Many GACG members have welcomed the negotiations for a new Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA), and several members have co-signed the various business memoranda (five altogether to co-incide with the meetings of the negotiators) on ACTA together with other stakeholders such as INTA, ECTA and other "Concerned business groups operating in ACTA nations". The most recent memorandum was submitted immediately prior to the latest round held in Rabat, Morocco on 16/17 July 2009. Eleven participating countries attended, and discussions centred on International Co-operation, Institutional Issues and Enforcement Practices, including transparency matters such as providing information to stakeholders and the interested public. The GACG Network was also represented at the EU Commission briefing to stakeholders held in Brussels on 21 May 2009 and the Chairman circulated a detailed report to members. The next round of negotiations will be hosted by the Republic of Korea in November 2009, and the intention is to conclude the agreement as soon as possible in 2010. Enforcement in the digital environment remains one of the more challenging elements yet to be tackled, and apparently a coalition of leading library, civil rights, and technology companies has just written to the U.S. government, urging it to drop all Internet provisions from ACTA.
8/5/2009
Global Anti-Counterfeiting Awards 2009
Above picture shows members of the presentation event held in Beijing with two of the main award winners: L-R, Jack Chang, Chairman QBPC; Patrick Wang, QBPC; Ian Lancaster, Reconnaissance International, Joint sponsors of GAC Awards; Individual Special Award winners Li Qunying, Director of IP Division, China Customs and Wang Zhiguang, Director of IP Division, Ministry of Public Security, Economic Crimes Investigation Department; and finally Sam Zhou of QBPC
7/17/2009
ACTA - EU Stakeholders' Consultation Meeting. 21 May 2009. Brussels
About 150 EU 'stakeholders' attended the meeting in Brussels on 21 May following the publication by the EU and other negotiating parties of a "Summary of Key elements under discussion" - clearly designed to assuage criticisms of the ACTA process as being 'secretive'. The meeting was also held to manifest some momentum to the process which has undeniably been stalled by the lack of any real progress on key issues and the postponement of recent meetings due to 'the change of administration in Washington'. Several GACG Network members, including the Chairman representing both Marques and UAACP were present.
7/17/2009
SPTO hosts meeting in Madrid on Economic Impact
The Chairman of the GACG Network addresses the meeting hosted by the Spanish Patent and Trademark Office to launch the OECD Survey of the Economic Impact of Counterfeiting. The Director General of the SPTO Alberto Casado is on the far left and next to him is Perdo Velasco Martin of DG Trade, European Commission. Several members of the GACG Network were present at the meeting including Union des Fabricants, Andema, Indicam and UAACP.