The Kellis IP Weekly: Issue 7.1
BRAZIL
Patents
USPTO Announces Relief Measures Due to Severe Flooding in Rio Grande do Sul: As the southern Brazilian state continues to reel from the flooding that began on April 27, 2024, the USPTO has classified that flooding as an “extraordinary situation” under applicable regulations, meaning that affected parties with matters pending before the USPTO can, for example, obtain extra time to respond or have applicable fees waived. See this USPTO publication (English). #patents #trademarks
INPI Publishes Study on Gene Editing Patents Relevant to Agriculture and Livestock: The study, published on June 26 under INPI’s Technical Cooperation Agreement with the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa), provides an overview of patent applications worldwide for technologies related to gene editing (including CRISPR, TALEN, and ZFN), from 2010 to the present. See https://www.gov.br/inpi/pt-br/central-de-conteudo/noticias/inpi-publica-estudo-sobre-tecnologias-de-edicao-genica-na-agropecuaria (Portuguese). #patents
Trademarks
No developments to report.
Copyright
Senate Nears Vote on AI Bill: PL 2338/2023 was discussed on July 4 by the Senate’s Internal Committee on Artificial Intelligence, and may be voted on both in committee and in a plenary session in July 2024. However, some Senators feel that the bill should be stripped of provisions dealing with other topics, such as fake news and copyright, before it goes to a vote. See https://www12.senado.leg.br/noticias/materias/2024/07/04/senado-pode-votar-regras-para-ia-e-indenizacao-por-zika-antes-do-recesso (Portuguese). #copyright
Enforcement
No developments to report.
Other
New INPI Statistics Website Launched: The website provides official statistics produced by INPI’s Economic Affairs Advisory Board as well as a new version of the Intellectual Property Database, updated to include data through 2023. See https://www.gov.br/inpi/pt-br/inpi-data (Portuguese). #IPoffice
INPI Hosts Distance-Learning Course on IP for Judges: Forty-one judges attended the course, which was hosted in partnership with the National Counsel of Justice (CNJ) and the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce, and Services (MDIC), and featured speakers from INPI’s Patent and Trademark directorates. See https://www.gov.br/inpi/pt-br/central-de-conteudo/noticias/inpi-avanca-em-acoes-de-capacitacao-em-propriedade-intelectual-para-o-judiciario (Portuguese). #IPgenerally
INPI Obtains Injunction Against Imposter Site: The injunction ordered LRC da Silva Serviços Administrativos Ltda. to take down the site https://portalinpi.com.br and to cease and desist from the use of INPI’s name and logo on the Internet, social media, and all other physical or virtual media. See https://www.gov.br/inpi/pt-br/central-de-conteudo/noticias/inpi-obtem-liminar-para-empresa-retirar-falso-site-da-internet (Portuguese). #IPoffice
MDIC’s Interministerial Group on IP Forms New Working Groups: One of the two new working groups will focus on Innovation, Industry, and Education, while the other will focus on IP and Sustainability. While official members of the groups are all representatives of Brazilian government ministries, both groups are able to invite private sector representatives and others to participate. See https://www.gov.br/propriedade-intelectual/pt-br/assuntos/noticias/2024/junho/propriedade-intelectual-gts-vao-debater-sustentabilidade-inovacao-industria-e-educacao-1 (Portuguese). #IPgenerally
Non-IP Topics of Interest
Chamber of Deputies to Vote on Tax Reform Bill: Following the delivery of the tax reform working group’s opinion on PLP 68/24 to the Chamber on July 4, President of the Chamber Arthur Lira expects voting on the bill to commence on July 10. The bill will govern the replacement of five separate taxes by a single tax after a 7-year transition period from 2026-2033. See https://www.camara.leg.br/noticias/1079814-regulamentacao-da-reforma-tributaria-sera-votada-a-partir-da-proxima-quarta-feira-diz-lira/ (Portuguese).
ARGENTINA
Milei’s Omnibus Bill Omits IP Provisions, Protects INPI: The “Law of Bases” omnibus structural reform bill championed by Libertarian Argentinean President Javier Milei, passed by Argentina’s congress on June 28, omits various IP-related provisions once in the bill, including with respect to Argentina joining UPOV 91 and the elimination of mandatory copyright collective management. The bill does, however, prohibit the dissolution of INPI. See https://www.breitbart.com/latin-america/2024/06/28/big-victory-for-javier-milei-argentine-congress-passes-massive-reform-bill/ (English); https://www.infobae.com/politica/2024/06/28/ley-bases-el-texto-definitivo-aprobado-por-diputados-y-el-senado-articulo-por-articulo/ (English); https://www.seedworld.com/latam/2024/06/13/lessons-learned-from-argentinas-upov-91-debate/ (English); https://www.fesaal.org/post/argentina-apoyo-internacional-contra-leyes-del-nuevo-gobierno-que-amenazan-el-derecho-de-autor-1?lang=en (English). #IPoffice
PARAGUAY
President Peña Touts Improvements in IP Enforcement: In the Economic Growth section of his first presidential report, Paraguay’s President Santiago Peña noted that efforts to strengthen investigative capacity and more efficiently utilize resources have benefitted the fight against piracy and counterfeiting, thus strengthening the observance of IP rights in the country. President Peña also flagged DINAPI’s collaborative work on interventions, criminal complaints, and counterfeit goods seizures as discouraging illegal trade. See https://www.dinapi.gov.py/portal/v3/noticias/detalle-noticia?idNoticia=439 (Spanish). #IPenforcement
URUGUAY
Minister Facio Highlights Need for Government Regulation of Content Industry: Ministry of Industry, Energy, and Mining (MIEM) Minister Elisa Facio spoke recently at an international conference regarding fair and equitable remuneration of interpreters in the digital environment. The conference was organized by the Uruguayan Society of Interpreters (SUDEI) and the Latin American School of Intellectual Property (ELAPI) on June 21. During her remarks, Minister Facio noted the economic strength of the content industry and MIEM’s focus under the current administration on strengthening the creative industries including through improved intellectual property management. In light of competing interests and challenges posed by new technologies, Facio called for strong yet flexible regulation. See https://www.gub.uy/ministerio-industria-energia-mineria/comunicacion/noticias/facio-regulacion-para-promover-industrias-creativas-digitalizacion-debe (Spanish). #copyright
LATIN AMERICA GENERALLY
FESAAL, AVACI to Hold Audiovisual Authors’ Meetings in Mexico City: The Latin American Audiovisual Authors Society Federation (FESAAL) and the International Confederation of Audiovisual Authors (AVACI) will hold their annual meetings on Nov. 5 and Nov. 6-7, respectively, in Mexico’s capital. The assemblies will continue to focus on achieving statutory reform throughout Latin America in favor of audiovisual authors, screenwriters, and directors, and to create CMOs for audiovisual rights. See https://www.fesaal.org/post/the-most-important-audiovisual-authors-meeting-in-the-world-will-take-place-in-november-in-mexico-c?lang=en (English). #copyright
QUESTIONS OR CONCERNS
Kellis IP is available to provide consulting services to help you understand and respond to any of the developments highlighted in this newsletter, or any other IP issues in Brazil and the surrounding region.
