Monday miscellany

The Amerikat is a little bit under the weather at the moment, so if you were visiting the blog especially to read her weekly contribution, please be patient -- it will be a little late this week. Meanwhile the IPKat Merpel and Tufty all wish her a speedy recovery.

On the subject of being patient, IPKat team member Jeremy has literally hundreds of unread emails awaiting his attention. Many of them are from people emailing to ask why he hasn't responded to their earlier emails. He's doing his best so, if you're awaiting a response, please hang on there. Meanwhile: (i) if you have sent him a link to an item on the BBC or any popular news source, there's a good chance that lots of other people have done so

too; (ii) if you have submitted an article for publication in the Journal of Intellectual Property Law and Practice and haven't heard whether it has been accepted or not, please remember that peer reviewers go on holiday too; (iii) the IPKat is not a law firm and can't give legal advice; (iv) if you are sending information that you'd like the IPKat to post on the forthcoming events side bar, can you draft it in a form enables it to be listed as easily as possible; (v) if you're writing to ask for a comment to be appended to a posted item, it's quicker and easier to do it yourself by clicking on 'comments' at the end of the item. If this doesn't work, it's probably because you have disabled the 'pop-up' facility -- try again, holding down the 'Ctrl' key; (vi) if you're writing to discuss an item that has been posted, check which team member has written it -- you may be emailing the wrong Kat -- and give a clue as to which post you're writing about (there are more than 4,700 articles on the IPKat and he has the memory of ... a cat).

Following last week's item on protection of the Olympic symbol ("But will they remove their rings?"), IPKat reader and artist Mark Lunt has submitted the above image, for which he is duly thanked.

Is podcasting the subject of a US patent? This is a keen discussion point following the publication of this item in Ars Technica, for which the IPKat thanks his friend Rebecca Dimaridis. If the patent is valid and the claims stand up to interpretative scrutiny, a lot of people may find themselves paying royalties to VoloMedia, which filed its application for a "method for providing episodic media content" in November 2003.

"Geographical Indications: Its Evolving Contours" is the title of a very interesting report (93 pages) prepared by MVIRDC World Trade Centre Mumbai in conjunction with Dr Prabuddha Ganguli. This report, published by SVKM’s NMIMS University’s Institute of Intellectual Property Studies, presents an overview of the interpretations and evolution of the concept of GIs in the context of the various International Conventions. The preface adds:

"Reputation of a product is a critical component of geographical Indications under the TRIPs Agreement. The study critically examines the system and practice of protection granted in respect of Geographical Indications in various countries, citing interesting GI cases. The GI approaches in the Indian system is analyzed with reference to the GI case studies in respect of several Indian products. India as a member of WTO has successfully registered as GIs a number of products in sectors such as tea, textiles, carpets, handicrafts, horticultural products, soap and essential oil, paintings, etc. Many more products are in the process of being registered. India has enacted the Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act 1999. Geographical Indications Registry at Chennai has jurisdiction in India.

The study presents highlights of important GI disputes in the international arena for better appreciation of the specific interests of the concerned parties and the economic impact in the wake of such disputes. The study also discusses the present debate at the WTO in the context of extending higher levels of protection beyond wines and spirits".

Is this a little piece of history? This link to Decision R 07/09 of the Enlarged Board of the European Patent Office, 22 July 2009, was received by the IPKat from none other than Jim Boff (Phillips & Leigh). Jim asks: "is this the first successful petition for review"? The Kat thinks it may well be -- and he suspects that, if it isn't, he'll soon be told.

Another of the IPKat's friends is seeking IP law work-related experience. She is a qualified solicitor with a Masters degree in Entertainment law, which covered IP law in depth. She writes,

"I'm willing to gain this experience on a non-paid basis and I'm available immediately. What I need is hands-on experience in dealing with any area of IP law, including contracts, copyright, licensing, media law, trade marks and design rights. I'm willing to gain this experience in London, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire or Cambridgeshire".

If you are interested, please email here to express your interest.