The Kellis IP Weekly: Issue 7.4
BRAZIL
Patents
No developments to report (but see patent-related developments in Uruguay and in Latin America generally below).
Trademarks
Minas Gerais Court Awards Damages for Trademark Infringement: The 16th Civil Chamber of the Court of Justice of Minas Gerais, reviewing a lower court decision finding infringement but declining to award damages for a clothing store’s unauthorized use of the “MARIA GUEIXA” brand, and applying a presumption that moral damage has occurred when intellectual property is infringed, awarded R$10,000 in moral damages to the brand owner, together with costs and fees. See https://www.migalhas.com.br/quentes/ 411584/loja-de-mg-indenizara-grife-em-r-10-mil-por-venda-de-produtos-falsos (Portuguese); https://www.migalhas.com.br/arquivos/2024/7/82D0B6203D745E_Acordao_ 1000023237075900120241.pdf (Portuguese). #trademarks
Grupo Fasano Wins Trademark Infringement Case Against Condominium: Asserting infringement of its VILA FASANO mark, registered by INPI in 2010, Grupo Fasano obtained a favorable ruling from the 2nd Business & Arbitration Disputes Branch of the Court of Justice in São Paulo in January 2023. That ruling was recently upheld, with the court imposing a to-be-determined amount in actual damages and R$30,000 in moral damages. The condominium has since changed its name from Fassano Ville Castanhal to Fasann Ville Castanhal. See https://www.metropoles.com/colunas/guilherme-amado/a-briga-judicial-do-fasano-com-um-condominio-fechado-do-para (Portuguese). #trademarks
Copyright
No developments to report (but see copyright-related developments in Paraguay and Peru below).
Enforcement
Survey Discovers Age Gap in Beliefs about Piracy: A survey commissioned by the National Confederation of Industry (CNI) found that 80% of Brazilians of age 45 years and up believe that piracy is always wrong, but only 53% of Brazilians age 16 to 24 share that belief. On average, 8% of the Brazilian population believe piracy is acceptable in any circumstance, while 17% believe the propriety of piracy depends on the circumstances. The survey also found that 41% of Brazilians report that they are rarely or never able to discern real from pirated products. See https://noticias.portaldaindustria.com.br/ noticias/economia/sete-em-cada-dez-brasileiros-concordam-que-a-pirataria-prejudica-a-economia-do-pais/ (Portuguese); https://veja.abril.com.br/coluna/radar/ pesquisa-aponta-que-70-da-populacao-acha-errado-comprar-produtos-piratas (Portuguese); https://oglobo.globo.com/blogs/lauro-jardim/post/2024/07/jovens-e-pessoas-com-renda-e-escolaridade-maior-compram-mais-produtos-piratas.ghtml (Portuguese). #IPenforcement
Brazilian Officials Attend Argentina Event on Combatting Piracy in the Health Sector: Executive Secretary Andrey Correa of Brazil’s National Counsel to Combat Piracy and Other IP-Related Crimes (CNCP) and other representatives of the Ministry of Justice and Public Security’s Consumer Protection division (SENACON) attended the Buenos Aires event, which was sponsored by the EU’s IP Key project and by Interpol. Customs officials, intelligence agents, and police officers from throughout South America participated in the conference, where discussions focused on best practices, case studies, and international cooperation to combat the sale of counterfeit medicines. With 95% of medicines purchased outside of licensed pharmacies either counterfeit or contraband, South American operations throughout the remainder of 2024 will focus on dismantling the criminal organizations perpetuating such crimes. See https://www.gov.br/mj/pt-br/assuntos/noticias/senacon-participa-de-reuniao-internacional-sobre-combate-a-crimes-de-pirataria-e-contrabando-na-saude-e-ambiente-digital (Portuguese). #IPenforcement
Danish Ambassador Discussed Fight Against Piracy with MJSP Minister: Ambassador Bisgaard Pedersen met with Ricardo Lewandoski, Minister of Justice and Public Security, on July 24 to discuss combined efforts to combat piracy, among other topics. Representatives of MJSP will visit Denmark later this year to further strengthen the two countries’ bilateral cooperation in this area. See https://www.gov.br/mj/pt-br/assuntos/noticias/reuniao-bilateral-entre-brasil-e-dinamarca-aprofunda-dialogo-sobre-combate-a-pirataria-e-cooperacao-entre-paises (Portuguese). #IPenforcement
Other
No developments to report.
Non-IP Topics of Interest
Labor Dispute Causes Delays in ANVISA Drug Approvals: A letter to ANVISA signed by associations and unions in the pharmaceutical sector, including Interfarma, ABIFINA, and Grupo FarmaBrasil, complains that labor disputes at the agency have delayed the issuance of 30% of drug import permits from one day to fifteen days; agency publications that used to be weekly are now going out every 2-4 weeks; and delayed releases at ports of entry into Brazil are affecting drug production planning. The letter requests a meeting with top ANVISA management to discuss a resolution of the highlighted issues. See https://veja.abril.com.br/coluna/radar/entidades-de-saude-reclamam-de-demora-da-anvisa-para-aprovar-medicamentos (Portuguese).
Brazil’s Federal Revenue Service Exempts Software from Some Tax Payments: According to Consultation 177 of June 24, 2024, released by Receita Federal’s General Coordination of Taxation (COSIT), amounts paid, credited, delivered, employed, or remitted to a resident or entity domiciled abroad as consideration for the right to market or distribute software for resale to an end consumer will be treated as royalties and subjected to income tax withholding in Brazil at the rate of 15%. However, such amounts will no longer be subjected to payment of the Cide (as long as no technology is transferred), PIS, and Cofins taxes. According to the Brazilian Software Association (ABES), the treatment of payments for cloud-based software as taxable royalties is incorrect and inconsistent with Brazil’s 1987 Software Law. See https://www.convergenciadigital.com.br/Gestao/Receita-isenta-cobranca-de-Cide%2C-PIS-e-Cofins-na-nuvem%2C-mas-insiste-em-cobrar-royalties-no-software-66526.html (Portuguese); http://normas.receita.fazenda.gov.br/sijut2consulta/link.action?idAto=138908 (Portuguese).
Lula Hopes to Present Brazil’s National Plan on Artificial Intelligence at UN: The plan is being developed by the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation, following a March 2024 request by President Lula to develop a policy proposal on AI that would make Brazil more competitive. At the time, Lula stated that he would like to present a genuinely Brazilian project on AI during his opening speech to the UN General Assembly in September. See https://veja.abril.com.br/coluna/radar/lula-vai-receber-ministros-no-planalto-para-discutir-plano-nacional-de-ia/ (Portuguese).
Brazil Sees Huge Increase in Number of Foreign Applicants Who Wish to Work and Invest in Brazil: During the first six months of 2024, the number of foreign applicants seeking residency to work and invest in Brazil grew 23% year-over-year and nearly 70% since the same period in 2022. To meet the rising demand, the Ministry of Justice and Public Security formed a task force that reduced the average time to issue a decision on such applications from 80 days to 20 days. The Brazilian government views the increase in applications as a sign of a heating economy. See https://veja.abril.com.br/coluna/radar/a-explosao-de-pedidos-de-estrangeiros-para-trabalhar-e-investir-no-brasil/ (Portuguese).
PARAGUAY
Copyright Directorate Announces Statistics for First Half of 2024: DINAPI’s General Directorate of Copyright and Related Rights announced the registration of 3,700 works during the first six months of 2024, with written and musical works the most-registered category and software and plans coming in second. The agency is granting 200 certificates of registration of written works and 100 certificates of registrations of musical works each month. See https://www.dinapi.gov.py/portal/v3/noticias/detalle-noticia?idNoticia=443 (Spanish). #copyright #IPoffice
DINAPI Joins DesignClass: The EUIPO’s DesignClass digital tool facilitates the searching and translation into 30 languages of product indications for industrial design registrations. DINAPI’s participation in DesignClass was facilitated by the EU’s AL-INVEST Verde program as well as EUIPO. Now that DINAPI is part of DesignClass, the agency is one of 19 countries using harmonized terms from the Harmonized Database of Product Indications (HDBPI). See https://www.dinapi.gov.py/portal/v3/noticias/detalle-noticia?idNoticia=444 (Spanish). #industrialdesigns #IPoffice
PERU
INDECOPI Leads Efforts to Combat Piracy at Lima International Book Fair 2024: The Copyright Directorate of INDECOPI joined with the National Commission to Fight Customs Crimes and Piracy (CLCDAP) and the Peruvian Book Chamber to coordinate efforts with the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the National Police to prevent book piracy. Such efforts include sharing a list of literary works to be presented at the event, intelligence activities, and implementation of a system of alerts to detect and prevent copyright-related crime. See https://www.gob.pe/institucion/indecopi/noticias/991341-el-indecopi-coordina-acciones-con-autoridades-para-evitar-pirateria-de-libros-a-proposito-de-la-fil-lima-2024 (Spanish). #copyright #IPoffice
URUGUAY
Uruguay’s Parliament Votes to Join Budapest Treaty: Mere weeks after voting to join the Patent Cooperation Treaty, Uruguay’s parliament has now voted to join the Budapest Treaty on the International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganisms for the Purposes of Patent Procedure. The action constitutes an additional step toward Uruguay’s goal of creating a national innovative ecosystem. See https://www.linkedin.com/posts/santiago-martinez-9202b055_dnpi-innovacion-budapest-activity-7221932314413441025-5yC1? (Spanish). #patents
LATIN AMERICA GENERALLY
EUIPO’s IPKey Latin America to Host Patent Examination Workshop Focused on Pharmaceuticals, Biotechnology, and Bioinformatics: The September 3-4 workshop for patent examiners of Latin American intellectual property offices will include one day focused on pharmaceuticals and biotechnology, and a second day focused on examination of technologies that combine biology and informatics. EPO authorities will provide substantive content, with some local speakers. See https://ipkey.eu/en/latin-america/activities/workshop-patents-examination-pharmaceuticals-biotechnology-and (English). #patents
PUBLIC CONSULTATIONS
USPTO – Experimental Use Exception Request for Comments: Published June 28, 2024; closes September 26, 2024. See https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/06/28/2024-14164/experimental-use-exception-request-for-comments (English).
*Registration Closes Soon* USPTO – Public Roundtable on Protections for Name, Image, Likeness, Other Indicia of Identity, and Reputation: Separate in-person and virtual roundtables will be held on August 5, 2024. Requests to speak must be submitted by 11:59 pm ET on July 31, 2024. See https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2024/07/01/2024-14455/public-roundtable-on-protections-for-name-image-likeness-other-indicia-of-identity-and-reputation (English).
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.
