Onion On Beckett

Onion on Beckett

Under the banner 'Scholars Discover 23 Blank Pages That May As Well Be Lost Samuel Beckett Play', the IPKat has simply been rejoicing inwards unopen to other splendidly pointed slice of satire past times The Onion. The characteristic begins:

"Just weeks later the centennial of the nascence of pioneering minimalist playwright Samuel Beckett, archivists analyzing papers from his Paris estate uncovered a minor stack of blank newspaper that scholars are calling "the latest representative of the belatedly Irish-born writer's genius".

The 23 blank pages, which literary experts presume is a two-act play composed old betwixt 1973 too 1975, are already existence heralded every bit 1 of the almost ambitious plant past times the Nobel Prize-winning author of Waiting For Godot, too a natural progression from his before works, including 1969's Breath, a 30-second play alongside no characters, too 1972's Not I, inwards which the only illuminated business office of the phase is a floating mouth.

"In what was certainly a witting conclusion past times Mr. Beckett, the white, uniform, non-ruled pages, which symbolize the starkness too emptiness of life, were left unbound, unmarked, too untouched," said Trinity College professor of Irish Gaelic literature Fintan O'Donoghue. "And, every bit if to farther exemplify the anonymity too facelessness of 20th-century man, they were found, of all places, betwixt other sheets of paper."

"I tin only conclude that nosotros convey stumbled upon something quite remarkable," O'Donoghue added".

is reminded of John Cage's 4' 33", which he believes to last the only alone blank run inwards which the author (sic) claims copyright. If the run of John Cage (left) is indeed legally protected, then also could last the spoof Beckett's.

Empty canvass here and here
Blank poesy here too here

Haven't An Idea; Criminal Sanctions Inwards The Eu

WIPO Copyright Treaty ("Copyright protection extends to expressions in addition to non to ideas, procedures, methods of functioning or mathematical concepts equally such") has a teeny weeny work alongside this: intellectual belongings constabulary doesn't genuinely protect ideas. Or has he missed something? Merpel says: here's a piddling competition: the laid out mortal to let her know if there's anything inwards the text of whatever international IP treaty or convention administered past times WIPO that suggests that ideas are indeed protectable wins a bottle of bubbly alongside which to drinkable the wellness of IP for roughly other year.

But let them out. Merpel says, fifty-fifty the adoption of the same scale of penalties throughout Europe won't operate unless judges are trained to utilize them consistently throughout the European Union empire. Or create nosotros say that 6 weeks inwards a Greek jail is most equally much penalty equally 4 years inwards a comfy Scandivanian one?

Crime in addition to Punishment here
Let the penalty gibe the criminal offense here

Drop Yesteryear Queen Mary Tomorrow For A Touching On Of Bubbly

Tomorrow sees Dr Thomas Hays of Lewis Silkin talking close the O2 v H3G comparative advertising illustration at Queen Mary.

All are welcome in addition to there's no charge. Just plough upwards at the Dean Rees House, Charterhouse Square at 5.30pm.

Coming Upward Earlier The Ecj

has learnt of the next goodies coming upward before the ECJ inwards the coming week:

*The hearing inwards Dyson, a representative concerning the registrability of the see-through drum chemical share of Dyson’s vacuum cleaner equally a merchandise grade (blogged past times Jeremy before this morning). says nearly fourth dimension – the reference was made inwards June 2003;

*The Belgian Levi Strauss merchandise grade judgment concerning infringement of the Levi jeans steal shape;

*The judgment inwards Commission v Luxembourg concerning the implementation of the rental in addition to lending correct directive;

*The hearing inwards the Commission v Microsoft contest representative before the CFI. This is scheduled for a whopping v days.

Shock Horror, Generic Purpose Scandal!

Shock generic usage of electrical goods merchandise mark

Today the European Court of Justice is hearing arguments inward Case C-321/03 Dyson Ltd v Registrar of Trade Marks. The questions referred to the ECJ past times the Chancery Division of the High Court for England as well as Wales are:

1.In a province of affairs where an applicant has used a sign (which is non a shape) which consists of a characteristic which has a role as well as which forms part of the appearance of a novel sort of article, as well as the applicant has, until the appointment of application, had a de facto monopoly inward such articles, is it sufficient, inward lodge for the sign to cause got acquired a distinctive graphic symbol inside the pregnant of Article 3(3) of Directive 89/104, that a important proportion of the relevant populace has past times the appointment of application for registration come upward to associate the relevant goods bearing the sign with the applicant as well as no other manufacturer?

2.If that is non sufficient, what else is needed inward lodge for the sign to cause got acquired a distinctive graphic symbol and, inward particular, is it necessary for the mortal who has used the sign to cause got promoted it equally a merchandise mark?

Left: an upright vacuum cleaner manufactured nether the Hoover brand

is horrified to read that the ECJ's Diary entry for today describes the example equally relating to a "mark comprising a functional characteristic (transparent plastic cylinder) forming part of a hoover" (emphasis added past times a scandalised IPKat). Is non HOOVER a registered merchandise score inward honor of vacuum cleaners - with other goods? Merpel adds, if the genericity of the discussion "hoover" is always litigated inward Europe inward proceedings that arrive at the European Court of Justice, volition that courtroom cause got judicial uncovering of its ain generic usage of the word?

Hoover Company here
Wikipedia defines hoover equally (i) generic term as well as (ii) something that should non live mentioned on household unit of measurement websites here, only equally (iii) a merchandise score here
More on J. Edgar Hoover, Howard Hoover as well as the Hoover Dam

Bbc Reminder; Novel Website

here

Listen to BBC Radio iv online posted arrangements for the start out 3 half-day courses on how to amend your intellectual belongings writing skills. Initial take-up has been real encouraging - the IPKat volition live on writing later on this calendar week to all of yous who expressed your interest. Right at in i lawsuit it looks equally though all 3 dates volition live on viable. If you've non all the same expressed an involvement exactly want to create so, delight e-mail the IPKat here.

All The Fun Of The Fair; To A Greater Extent Than On Mis-Implementation Of The Enforcement Directive

here and posted a weblog from an anonymous friend who expressed grave anxiety concerning the touching on of the UK's version of the Enforcement Directive upon patent litigation. The same friend has had approximately farther thoughts, this fourth dimension on the enforcement of merchandise grade rights. He says:

"... the novel rules create non apply to international merchandise marks because individual forgot to improve that well-known favourite, paragraph 6(5) of the Trade Marks (International Registration) Order 1996 (the utter inwards the tea room is of nil else) which, I am certain yous recall, is the equivalent to s.25 of the Trade Marks Act 1994 [the lawsuit of failing to register a registrable transaction] as well as which fifty-fifty immediately remains equally a restriction on damages recovery - pregnant that the UK has failed to implement the directive as well as a farther regulation is required inwards whatever event.

An interesting enquiry to inquire is what happens to damages enquiries that are already nether agency (a) inwards general, given that manifestly the election betwixt enquiries as well as accounts is abolished as well as (b) inwards relation to costs for late-registered rights? Presumably the patentee cannot recover costs of an enquiry. It's too interesting merely painful to speculate on separate costs orders".

Above right, as well as left: the UK implementation of the Enforcement Directive is causing serious headaches for IP lawyers

Indeed, mewses the IPKat, who would rather similar to come across a full-scale review of the incidents of registration (and non-registration) of transactions concerning IP rights. The registration provisions were introduced alongside the laudable aims of protecting the interests of rights-holders as well as furnishing valuable commercial data equally to who was entitled to license (or work) an IP right. Yet systems for the protection of copyright as well as other unregistered rights appear to move surprisingly good without existence able to confer those benefits. Are they actually necessary immediately and, if they are, should they live on standardised or rationalised throughout the European unmarried market? Merpel says, it would live on prissy to know to a greater extent than nearly the abolition of the dominion that yous convey to select betwixt damages as well as an trouble organisation human relationship of profits, especially alongside regard to the exercise inwards other European jurisdictions inwards which it has never been necessary to brand that election.