There is no such thing as too much Peruvian (and other) IP news from Latin America

Kat friend Fredy Sánchez Merino provides his regular review of IP developments in Latin America.

Peru. In order to facilitate patent registration procedures, the Peruvian Intellectual Property Office (IDECOPI), has created a WhatsApp channel for consultations regarding on-course applications as well as FAQs regarding patentability procedures. In an official statement (here), the Office explained how this measure is yet another attempt to decentralize the access to its services for users in remote regions of the country.

Peru. Peru has entered the Global PPH (here), thus making available accelerated procedures for Peruvians inventors in other offices, including Germany, Australia, Austria, Canada, Colombia, South Korea, Spain, the US, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Nordic Patent Institute, Iceland, Israel, Japan, Norway, New Zealand, Poland, Portugal, UK, Russia, Singapore, Sweden and the Visegrad Patent Institute. Considered by INDECOPI to be a notable achievement, the Office has provided a digital guide (here) for applicants to take advantage of the benefits of the network.

Peru. In a new resolution (not available yet), INDECOPI has denied (again) a trademark application based on Art. 135 p) of Decision 486/2000. This time, the denial of the trademark “Huevon” has aroused controversy among the IP stakeholders in the country. Since trademark rights in Peru subsist only on the basis of registration, refusal to register means no exclusive rights can be in the trademark unless it is registered. On that basis, what is of concern to some is that the refusal is based on the seldom relied-upon ground of morality or public order, which is itself highly subjective, perhaps even the more so in countries with a strong religious culture. The applicant, Seinauer & CIA S.A.C., has appealed the decision.

Bolivia. National Service of Intellectual Property (SENAPI) has made available public information regarding IP applications in Bolivia in 2018. With trade marks (and other distinctive signs) applications spearheading the list, with a total of 6414, the Office also noted that 135 patent applications as well as 2237 copyright applications were filed. Interestingly,1391 of this total were under a governmental program called “My first work, my first registration", focused on generating awareness in students at the primary and secondary level, by registering their artistic and /literary works and providing training sessions.

Colombia. In the case of Nestlé Colombia v. Jeronimo Martins Colombia SAS for the wrongful use of a Nestle color trade marks, SIC has prohibited the defendant from commercializing the product “Choco Power”, as provided under Art.155 d) Decision 486/2000. The trademark, consisting of a green tone identified under Pantone 361C, was protected through interim measures (here) in a preliminary finding. The prohibition will remain in effect pending the result of the case in chief.

Colombia. SIC has ordered Evacol SAS to pay compensation to Crocs Inc. in the amount of 74 million COP (roughly USD 23.500) as well as removal of all the clogs identified under specified numerical references as per the owner’s classification system (here). The decision was based on a determination that Evacol infringed a recognized three-dimensional mark owned by the plaintiff. The defendant has been given a deadline of 30 days for removal and destruction of all the infringing clog models and the molds used for their production.

Photo is by Pedro Szekely and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.