News

On November 6, Brazil and China advanced in a strategic partnership focused on consumer protection and combating piracy. During a meeting, the National Consumer Secretariat (Senacon) received the vice minister of the State Administration for Market Regulation of China (SAMR), Liu Jun, to discuss a memorandum of understanding that will formalize the exchange of information between the countries and implement coordinated actions.

With essential representatives from both nations, topics such as product guarantee, food safety, and strengthening inspection measures for defective or unsafe products were discussed.

Strategic Impacts of this Alliance

This agreement aims to facilitate the exchange of data and the creation of a communication channel between Senacon and SAMR, allowing joint actions in areas of common interest.

The cooperation reinforces the importance of a globalized approach in combating piracy, impacting consumer safety and national economies.

For businesses and consumers facing challenges with piracy, Tavares IP offers specialized support in combating counterfeit products, helping to protect brands and ensure a safer market.

Learn more about Tavares IP’s anti-piracy service and strengthen your protection.

Source: Brazilian Ministry of Justice and Public Security

The Director of Trademarks, Industrial Designs, and Geographical Indications of BPTO, Schmuell Lopes Cantanhede, announced during a meeting with trademark system users that the Institute will start accepting trademark applications that contain advertising elements (slogans).

The updated Trademark Manual is scheduled for publication on November 27, based on a new interpretation of item VII of art. 124 of the Industrial Property Law—LPI (9,279/1996).

According to Cantanhede, this is the first step towards registering trademarks with slogans in the first instance. In 2025, a satisfaction survey will be conducted with users; in 2026, an intermediate assessment; and in 2028, a final evaluation of the effects of the improvement.

During the meeting at the BPTO headquarters in Rio de Janeiro on October 30, trademark users who had previously registered to participate were able to clarify doubts about the implementation of the new interpretation of item VII of Art—124 of the LPI.

The activity took place within the “Permanent Dialogue with Interested Parties” project, which will include new meetings on other BPTO services.

The project focuses on understanding users’ needs and expectations related to Objective 9 of the Strategic Plan 2023-2026—Improve governance and management practices and institutional relationships.

Read the presentation by the INPI director. (In Portuguese)

Watch the meeting on the INPI YouTube channel. (In Portuguese)

Check out the proposed text for updating the Trademark Manual. (In Portuguese)

Source: BPTO

The Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BPTO) and the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) signed a memorandum of understanding on IP on October 23. As part of the agreement, the BPTO, represented by its president, Júlio César Moreira, announced the publication on its website of the first in a series of 15 IPOS Business Guides, translated into Portuguese and customized for the Brazilian reality.

The first guide, Protecting Your Competitive Advantage, addresses the concepts of IP and how it can help develop businesses. Aimed at entrepreneurs, the guides also address topics such as establishing partnerships, analyzing the competition, internationalizing companies, and generating resources from IP. The goal is for all guides to be published by BPTO by November 2025.

In addition to the guides, the partnership will have two main objectives: sharing information on the valuation of intellectual property assets and generating opportunities for the internationalization of the BPTO Academy.

Innovation diplomacy

The agreement was signed during the IP Strategies for Business workshop, organized by the Brazilian Embassy in Singapore and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).

The workshop is related to the mission of nine Brazilian startups to Singapore from October 22 to 30 to participate in an immersion program in the Asian country’s innovation ecosystem and the Singapore Innovation and Technology Week (SWITCH).

For the third consecutive year, Brazil will stand at SWITCH, made possible by the Innovation Diplomacy Program of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, whose objective is to promote Brazil’s image as an innovative nation and foster partnerships between Brazilians and foreigners on this topic.

Source: BPTO

Brazil is ranked 50th in the Global Innovation Index (GII) 2024, released on Thursday, September 26, by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). The country dropped one position compared to the previous year, but it is still the leader among the economies of Latin America and the Caribbean. The ranking includes 133 countries.

The top ten in the ranking are Switzerland, Sweden, the United States, Singapore, the United Kingdom, South Korea, Finland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Denmark.

Since 2007, WIPO has released the ranking annually. It is the main indicator of the global innovation ecosystem. Check out the current result.

Source: BPTO

Bill 2496/24 establishes a penalty of 1 to 3 months of detention or a fine for anyone registering a trademark, even without developing a related economic activity, to sell this right to other companies. The text amends the Industrial Property Law and is being analyzed by the Chamber of Deputies.

According to the author, Congressman Helder Salomão (PT-ES), there are numerous cases of individuals and companies who apply for a trademark registration to the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI) simply to, at a later date, sell the right to use it to companies that already use the trademark to provide a service or sell goods.

“Such fraud causes several setbacks to those who already exercise, in good faith, but without registration, an economic activity using the trademark,” argues Salomão.

According to Salomão, the bill’s purpose is to allow those harmed to take legal action to avoid harm to their rights.

Next steps

The Industry, Commerce, and Services Committee and the Constitution and Justice and Citizenship Committee will analyze the proposal. The Plenary will then analyze it. To become law, the text must be approved by the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate.

Source: Agência Câmara

The paraphrased use of words that appear in the choruses of Tim Maia’s songs on T-shirts without prior authorization constitutes undue appropriation of a work for commercial exploitation. It generates the obligation to pay compensation for copyright infringement.

The 3rd Panel of the Superior Court of Justice reached this conclusion in a unique appeal. The singer’s estate, which filed the action against the fashion label Reserva, died in 1998.

One of the contested prints has the inscription “Guaraná & Suco de Caju & Goiabada & Sobremesa,” taken from the excerpt “Tomo guaraná, suco de caju, goiabada para sobremesa” (I drink guaraná, caju‘s juice, goiabada for dessert) from the song “Do Leme ao Pontal,” released by Tim Maia in 1986.

The ordinary courts concluded that the singer’s rights had been violated and ruled that the lawsuit was admissible. They prohibited the sale of T-shirts with the inscription and ordered the company to pay R$15,000 in moral damages and material damages to be determined.

The 3rd Panel of the Court upheld the ruling but changed how material damages were calculated. The rapporteur for the case, Justice Marco Aurélio Bellizze, explained that the trademark’s conduct led to the improper sale of T-shirts with reproductions of musical works.

“The prints go beyond a mere reference to the author’s works, as they are copies of the lyrics of the songs, with the simple addition of the connector ‘&,’ which constitutes an undue appropriation of a work for commercial exploitation,” said the judge.

Low compensation

Minister Bellizze also concluded that obtaining material damages based on the amount received by the trademark from the profits from the improper marketing of the T-shirts is not enough to punish the conduct and discourage copyright infringement.

The artist’s association with a certain trademark without due authorization may represent an endorsement of a thought that does not coincide with the singer’s perception, linking him to the brand without his approval.

For the rapporteur, the conduct allows the company to have a greater advantage since, by associating itself with Tim Maia’s image, it can increase the value of its trademark and the sales of other products.

Therefore, he determined that the compensation would consist of the total amount obtained from the sales plus all the losses from Tim Maia’s estate.

In other words, Reserva will have to pay the singer’s family all the money it raised from the sale of the products and all the amount that should have been paid in a possible contract authorizing the use of the work on clothing items. The amount will be collected in settlement of the judgment.

Source: Conjur

Protect Your Creative Works with Tavares IP

In light of the recent ruling by Brazil’s Superior Court of Justice, which highlights the severe implications of unauthorized use of copyrighted material, ensuring your intellectual property is adequately protected is crucial. The court’s decision underscores how even a seemingly minor infringement—like the unapproved use of song lyrics on merchandise—can have significant legal and financial consequences.

At Tavares IP, we specialize in safeguarding your creative assets against misappropriations. Our expert team provides comprehensive copyright services, including registration, enforcement, and litigation support to ensure your works are not exploited without your consent.

Don’t wait for a dispute to arise. Contact Tavares IP today by clicking here to secure your intellectual property and avoid costly legal battles. Reach out now to protect what you’ve worked so hard to create.

To reinforce the protection of Geographical Indications (GIs) in Brazil, the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BPTO) held the pre-launch of the National Directory to Combat GI Counterfeiting and the existing Directory for trademarks on August 28.

Learn more

The Directory is a digital platform that seeks to support producers and service providers throughout the country in the face of counterfeits that cause losses to national entrepreneurs, mislead consumers, and undermine the recognized quality of Brazilian GIs.

The platform functions as a strategic information center for access by Brazilian police and inspection forces, based on a partnership between BPTO and the National Council for Combating Piracy (CNCP) of the Ministry of Justice. The service will be free of charge.

BPTO will receive information provided by the GIs themselves in the Directory, which will be made available for access by authorities with police powers and consumers, when applicable.

Registration of GIs

With the pre-launch, an exclusive contact channel on the BPTO portal is now available for GIs to register, forward relevant information, and receive guidance from the Institute.

Among the strategic information for combating GI counterfeiting are contact details for the GI’s legal representation, images of original vs. fake products, information on labels, bottling, routes, and licensees, among other details that producers consider necessary to act in the repression and inhibition of crimes against Geographical Indications.

Source: INPI

Protect your Geographical Indications with Tavares IP

Tavares IP is ready to help you navigate the new protection measures and take advantage of the opportunities offered by the new National Directory. With our intellectual property expertise and in-depth knowledge of Brazilian regulations, we ensure that your GIs are adequately protected against counterfeiting and rights infringement.

Contact us today for expert guidance and to ensure maximum protection.

Talk to our experts.

Anthropic is also facing a lawsuit from music publishers.

A group of writers is suing artificial intelligence startup Anthropic, claiming the company committed “mass theft” by training its chatbot Claude with copies of copyrighted books.

Similar lawsuits have been filed against rival OpenAI’s ChatGPT, but this is the first case brought by writers against Anthropic.

Former OpenAI leaders founded the San Francisco-based company. According to Fast Company, the company has marketed itself as “more responsible and security-focused than AI models that can write emails and summarize documents. ”

However, the lawsuit alleges that the company’s actions “made a mockery of its lofty goals” by accessing pirated book repositories to build its AI.

The trio of writers Andrea Bartz, Charles Graeber, and Kirk Wallace Johnson filed the lawsuit. All three seek to represent a class of fiction and nonfiction authors in similar situations.

Legal Trouble

In addition to the lawsuit filed by the book authors, Anthropic is also facing a lawsuit filed by music publishers who claim that Claude recycles copyrighted song lyrics.

OpenAI and Microsoft, partners in the AI ​​business, also need help. They are facing a copyright infringement lawsuit filed by a group led by John Grisham (author of “The Firm” and “The Pelican Brief,” for example) and George R. R. Martin (of “Game of Thrones”), in addition to other lawsuits from media outlets such as The New York Times, Chicago Tribune, and Mother Jones.

Anthropic launches Claude in Brazil with a focus on corporate use

Since the beginning of the month, end consumers and companies will be able to access the tool online through free applications for Android and iOS (Claude 3.5 Sonnet version) and channels for developers to integrate the feature into their applications.

Claude’s unique feature lies in its corporate use. In recent tests, it has proven to be better than the rich ones in managing tasks involving large volumes of data, mathematical calculations, and programming codes.

Source: Exame

Contact us for expert guidance on intellectual property issues. Our team can help you effectively navigate these complex challenges.

The Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BPTO) and the Chinese Intellectual Property Office (CNIPA) met on August 16 at the BPTO headquarters in Rio de Janeiro to discuss cooperation.

Among the topics discussed were the functioning of the trademark system in Brazil and the observance of such rights; the modalities of priority examination of patents, including the Patent Prosecution Highway (PPH) agreement between the two institutes; and the use of Information Technology tools, covering topics such as artificial intelligence and cybersecurity. Other issues addressed at the meeting were using Geographical Indications and implementing activities to disseminate IP.

During the meeting, the two institutes also exchanged information about their activities, projects, and structures. Regarding the demand for services, the CNIPA received more than 3 million patent applications in 2023.

Source: BPTO

For businesses and inventors seeking to navigate the dynamic landscape of intellectual property and ensure adequate protection for their innovations, Tavares Intellectual Property is here to assist. Our team of highly qualified professionals is ready to provide tailored consulting, strategic guidance, and comprehensive support on all intellectual property matters.

Contact us by clicking here to ensure your rights are adequately protected and explore the best global IP opportunities.

States in the Southeast and South lead the index.

São Paulo, Santa Catarina, Paraná, Rio de Janeiro, and Rio Grande do Sul are Brazil’s most innovative economies, according to the first edition of the Brazil Innovation and Development Index (IBID), released this Monday (5) by the Brazilian Patent and Trademark Office (BPTO), an agency linked to the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services.

The IBID is measured on a scale ranging from 0 to 1. The index considers different aspects of identifying national and regional leaders in innovation. The index comprises 74 indicators divided into seven pillars: institutions, human capital, infrastructure, economy, business, knowledge and technology, and creative economy. These pillars, in turn, are divided into 21 dimensions: credit, investments, education, regulatory environment, sustainability, knowledge creation, and intangible assets, among others.

São Paulo is the national leader with IBID 0.891. In second place is the state of Santa Catarina, with an index of 0.415. Paraná is next with 0.406, Rio de Janeiro with 0.402, and Rio Grande do Sul with 0.401. The national average is 0.291.

First Brazilian index

The IBID was developed using the methodology of the Global Innovation Index (GII) of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). According to the BPTO, the Brazilian index is the sixth national index created using this methodology. Only the European Union, China, India, Colombia, and Vietnam have their own indexes.

The IGI has been published since 2007 and ranks 132 countries based on their potential and challenges. In the most recent edition, in 2023, Brazil occupied the 49th position in the world ranking and the first in the regional ranking (Latin America and the Caribbean), rising five places compared to the previous year.

Brazil is a country of continental dimensions, with profound diversity throughout its vast territory. This diversity is visible and portrayed by economic, social, environmental, cultural, and demographic indicators. “The objective of the IBID in this context is precisely to fill an important gap in the national statistical system,” explains BPTO’s chief economist, Rodrigo Ventura.

“There was a gap in innovation until today. An important gap in the national statistical system is an indicator that would allow Brazil to have a picture of its reality in innovation from a regional and territorial perspective,” he reinforces.

Inequalities

The rankings produced from the IBID results highlight inequalities and also national diversities. While the Southeast and South regions concentrate innovation in the country, with states occupying seven of the top eight positions in the overall ranking, the North and Northeast regions focus on the lower part. States of both areas occupy the last 15 positions. The Center-West occupies an intermediate position in the overall IBID ranking.

The data show, however, that considering the income level of the population—measured by the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita, that is, the sum of production and wealth produced in the state divided by the number of inhabitants—economies in the Northeast perform in innovation above expectations.

In all, 14 of the 27 federative units recorded results in innovation above expectations for their level of economic development. These are the so-called innovation exponents of the IBID. Eight are northeastern states: Maranhão, Paraíba, Piauí, Ceará, Sergipe, Rio Grande do Norte, Pernambuco and Bahia.

On the other hand, the study shows that 13 economies obtained results below expectations in innovation. This group includes Alagoas, Espírito Santo, in addition to the seven states of the North Region – Amapá, Acre, Roraima, Pará, Amazonas, Rondônia, and Tocantins – the Federal District and the other states of the Center-West: Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul and Goiás.

Innovation

According to BPTO, innovation is “a key element for the economic progress and competitiveness of economies, regardless of their income level.”

The institute emphasizes that the definition of innovation has been expanded and is no longer restricted to research and development laboratories or published scientific articles. In this sense, it is considered essential that innovation occurs “in a socially inclusive, environmentally sustainable and territorially integrated manner,” the text states.

According to Ventura, the results may highlight practices that can be replicated nationwide. “Each state presents different challenges and potentialities, and this is the wealth of data and information provided by IBID. The different dynamics and profiles of local science, technology, and innovation ecosystems,” he says, adding: “It reinforces and provides information and data on the challenges and potentialities of each state and each region. Not only the challenges and bottlenecks but also which states stand out in certain areas and probably have solutions or have followed paths their peers can copy.”

Source: Agência Brasil

Contact Tavares IP to explore how Brazil’s new innovation metrics can benefit your business. Our experts are here to help you protect your intellectual property and navigate the evolving innovation landscape. Click here to reach out for tailored support and insights.