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In this contribution to the first edition of the "Law Reviews" relating to "Media and Entertainment", Mark Peters, Counsel at Grünecker, introduces the basic regulations in Germany.

Juve’s current handbook identifies Grünecker as one of the most active filing firms at the European Patent Office. The "large prosecution practice" handles intellectual property rights over a broad technical spectrum. The automotive and chip industries have long entrusted Grünecker with applications and oppositions, writes Juve. Juve mentions...

In its current handbook Juve assesses the patent litigation team at Grünecker as "well positioned" in the market. Lawyers and patent attorneys work on the cases together, and Juve explains that their success shows how "well this mixed approach works at Grünecker". This approach allows the the litigation team to counsel over a broad technical...

Grünecker "is a permanent fixture" in trademark, design and competition law, praises the Juve editorial team in the new edition of the handbook. The team processes a "high volume of cases", but also has a strong prosecution practice. Juve rates the number of international companies among Grünecker’s clients as “impressive”. Grünecker's practice...

Grünecker continues to be one of the best firms in trademark, design and unfair competition law. The strong litigation activity of its “large teams” was the reason why Grünecker had a stronger position than its competitors, according to the current (2019) Handbook. The team was well connected in the international market and advised a number of...

As regards patent prosecution, Grünecker has improved again. Grünecker would take a leading role in a number of nullity and infringement cases with a broad technical spectrum. With the trials related to Connected Cars, the litigators of Grünecker had made the cut in a large litigation series, praises Juve.

The strength of the “market-leading...

Mixed teams consisting of patent attorneys and attorneys-at-law are Grünecker’s specialty. Grünecker serves as a role model for the entire industry.

The complexity of patent trials significantly increases according to Juve in its current (2019) Handbook: Detailed knowledge of all technical and legal issues of the relevant industries who are...

Juve Magazine nominated Grünecker as “Firm of the Year for IP” again.

According to Juve, the Grünecker litigation team is in charge of “maybe the most important litigation series of the year before German courts”. The huge patent prosecution department, which would be “equaled in Europe only by a few competitors”, would guarantee clients “a broad...

Dr. Patrick Erk, patent attorney and partner of Grünecker, in an article for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), illustrates how enterprises of any size may profit from patent protection. Patents create values, because they make an enterprise financially more stable and agile. Patent protection keeps competitors from copying technical...

Grünecker and partners Dr. Heike Vogelsang-Wenke, Dr. Jens Hammer and Dr. Bernd Allekotte are amongst the most recommended firms and attorneys for patent law in Germany. This reports German “Wirtschaftswoche” in its December issue. For this ranking, the “Handelsblatt”-Institute interrogated 690 patent attorneys and attorneys-at-law in 111 firms and...

On occasion of the IAA car fair in Frankfurt, the German TV station ZDF reports on the patent study of Grünecker on battery technology. There is hardly any manufacturer that dares not to present an e-model of its own. The German manufacturers apparently start a chase now, at least with respect to patent applications. Daimler takes third place with...

The German car manufacturers have, over the past years, filed for surprisingly many patents for batteries of electric cars, reported the newspaper “Süddeutsche Zeitung” in an article about a current patent study of Grünecker. The study compares the amount of patent applications of the most important car manufacturers and suppliers in the area of...

Manufacturers may prohibit dealers from distributing goods via market places such as eBay or Amazon. That is what the Advocate General at the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) demands. The leading specialist trade journal, TextilWirtschaft, interviewed Dr. Holger Gauss, Attorney-at-Law at Grünecker, who represents a broad range of...

The furniture manufacturer E15 prevailed against IKEA in design law. Arcade, the information portal for the furniture and design industry, was keen to know more about it from Dr. Nicolás Schmitz, Attorney-at-Law at Grünecker. Dr. Schmitz, who represents a host of manufacturers from the luxury goods industry, observes: For the Federal Supreme Court,...

The Federal Supreme Court decided that the Indian proprietors of the trademark Micro-Cotton are entitled to trademark protection. In the specialist magazine TextilWirtschaft, Dr. Nicolás Schmitz, Attorney-at-Law at Grünecker, comments on the decision. The term is considered a made-up word worthy of protection in Germany, not, however, in other...

For the second time in its 55 year history, the German Federal Patent Court has granted a compulsory license. This allows the company to continue distributing a drug whose active component had been patented. In a third-party article for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Dr. Franz-Josef Zimmer, patent attorney with Grünecker, and Dr. Bernd...

Car manufacturers and their suppliers currently fight various battles. The transition from combustion engine to electric power systems will become expensive. At the same time, the companies need to heavily invest in research and development of autonomous driving. The “Grünecker-Patentindex” realizes: As regards alternative power units, the German...

The Federal Supreme Court has ruled that the colour red belongs to the savings banks (Sparkassen) in the German banking sector. This represents a victory for the savings banks: "It is extremely difficult to be granted trademark on colour", stated Grünecker attorney Dr Nicolás Schmitz, quoted by the German Press Agency ("dpa"). "You can tell that...

Budding patent attorneys must be interested in technology and inventions, states Grünecker attorney Dr Bernd Allekotte in the Legal Career Guide "Karriereführer Recht". If this is the case, there is a world of exciting opportunities: "Ranging from mechanical inventions to new chemical substances, through to profitable transmission pathways in...

Der Betreiber der App Wetter.de hat vor dem Bundesgerichtshof gegen Nachahmer verloren. "Der Begriff Wetter.de ist nur dann als sogenannter Werktitel geschützt, wenn jeder zweite, zufällig ausgewählte Konsument die App mit einem bestimmten Dienstleister verbindet", erklärt Dr. Holger Gauss, Rechtsanwalt bei Grünecker, in einem Gastbeitrag für das...

In a recent commentary, journalist Christoph Behrens of German daily newspaper Süddeutsche Zeitung warns the German car industry to oversleep change to alternative drive technologies. He relies on Grünecker´s-Car-Patent-Index to illustrate that the domestic car industry lags behind in this sector: "Currently, most patent applications for...

Focus widmet der Kanzlei Grünecker als Top-Adresse für Patent- und Markenschutz ein mehrseitiges Portrait. Im Rahmen dieses Artikels erklären die Grünecker-Partner Dr. Bernd Allekotte und Prof. Maximilian Kinkeldey die Bedeutung ihrer Arbeit für Unternehmen aus dem In- und Ausland. "Ein gutes Patent ist wie eine Lizenz zum Gelddrucken", sagt Bernd...

Der Grünecker-Auto-Patentindex ist Thema auf der Titelseite der Süddeutschen Zeitung. Die Studie zeigt, dass die Patentanmeldungen für alternative Antriebstechnologien zurückgegangen sind. Währenddessen haben die Patentanmeldungen für Verbrennungsmotoren einen neuen Höchststand erreicht. Diese Entwicklung gibt Aufschluss über die Innovationen von...

In an interview with the renowned Chinese newspaper “Science and Technology Daily” regarding automobile manufacturing after the release of the Tesla patent and the Chinese Start-up “Youxia Motors”, Grünecker patent attorney Mr Yilin Jin analyses industry trends and the patent prosecution practice in this technological field. Jin concludes that...

Zur Entscheidung des Bundesgerichtshofes über das Nivea-Blau sprach die Redaktion der Zeitung „Die Welt“ mit Dr. Holger Gauss, Rechtsanwalt bei Grünecker. „Ich rechne damit, dass der Fall frühestens Ende 2016 abgeschlossen sein wird“, sagt Dr. Gauss. Für Beiersdorf sei die Entscheidung des BGH vorteilhaft: Es reiche im Prinzip aus, wenn in einer...

In the dispute over the withdrawal of the "Nivea blue" colour trademark, the "Horizont" trade journal quotes the opinion of Grünecker attorney Dr Holger Gauss. "Beiersdorf should now invest in advertising", advises Dr Gauss. Until the new consumer survey required by the Federal Patent Court began, Beiersdorf can could the opportunity to catch...

The Federal Patent Court has overruled the registration of a red colour trademark for the Sparkasse Financial Group. "It is almost certainly going to be difficult for the Sparkasse Group" comments Grünecker Attorney Dr Holger Gauss in the "Süddeutsche Zeitung”. Colour trademark requirements are high, and in the next stage of the proceedings at the...

Ob Nivea-Blau, Sparkassen-Rot oder Langenscheidt-Gelb - immer wieder wird vor Gericht um Farbmarken gestritten. Dr. Nicolás Schmitz erklärt in "Werben & Verkaufen, was beim Marketing beachtet werden muss, um eine Farbmarke nicht zu gefährden.“Marketingverantwortliche müssen vor allem darauf achten, dass sie ihre Farbmarke richtig positionieren und...

The dispute between Beiersdorf and Unilever over the “Nivea blue” colour trademark is entering the next round. The Federal Supreme Court (BGH) has postponed its decision until July, yet the question of the degree of recognition that a colour trademark must have in order to be protected as a trademark remains. The dispute between Beiersdorf and...

Unilever has requested that the distinctive Nivea blue is no longer protected as a colour trademark. Beiersdorf must now prove that customers perceive Nivea blue as a distinct colour inherent to the brand. Grünecker Attorney Dr. Nicolás Schmitz stated to “Welt” that the undertaking of protecting the colour is “a tour de force of trademark law” -...

The use of a particular color combination is an important element in the marketing strategy of many companies. Such colors can be protected as a trademark to defend against imitators. As a guest editor for “Markt und Mittelstand”, Dr. Holger Gauss, attorney-at-law at Grünecker, analyzes the opportunities and risks of filing a color mark, and gives...

In future, the Court of Justice of the European Union could make it considerably more difficult for manufacturers of smartphones and patent right exploiters to file actions prohibiting competitors to sell their devices. This can be seen from the final pleadings of the Advocate General as regards a preliminary ruling requested by the district court...

Adidas prevails against rival Nike in a patent suit. A Nike process patent for manufacturing sport shoes was cancelled. The victory in court is likely to give Adidas a new, urgently needed tailwind in patents because, according to a survey conducted by Grünecker, Nike is presently the obvious pioneer in patents. “Die Welt” cites the author of the...

Following years of constant growth, Adidas needs to reinvent itself, writes Wirtschaftswoche. Among other things, the editorial team sees a lack of innovative power, and proves it with a current patent survey of Grünecker. Accordingly, Nike is way ahead of Adidas in patent applications. The magazine cites the patent expert and attorney-at-law Dr....

Der Kaffee-Spezialist Nespresso will künftig in Frankreich Wettbewerber unterstützen, Kapseln für Nespresso-Maschinen zu entwickeln. Die Redaktion der Tageszeitung „Die Welt“ sprach dazu mit Martin Dropmann, Patentanwalt im Kölner Büro von Grünecker. Dropmann erklärte, dass für diesen Fall zu beurteilen sei, ob Nespresso eine marktbeherrschende...

The dictionaries of the Langenscheidt publishing house appear in yellow. Also yellow, one of its competitors packs up its language learning software - it may not use this colour, though, decided the German Federal Supreme Court now. “Handelsblatt” talked about this decision with Dr. Holger Gauss, attorney-at-law at Grünecker. Dr. Gauss appreciates...

The Court of Justice of the European Union confirms that Apple can have its concept for setting up and designing its stores protected as a trademark. The Handelsblatt discusses the matter with Dr. Nicolás Schmitz, Specialist Intellectual Property Attorney at the Munich office of the law firm of Grünecker. Dr. Nicolás Schmitz expects that very many...

Apple can have the design of its stores protected as a trademark. The leading textile industry magazine, Textilwirtschaft, quoted Dr. Nicolás Schmitz, intellectual property attorney at the Munich office of the law firm of Grünecker, saying that this decision by the Court of Justice of the European Union was also a signpost for the fashion industry....

Patent developers such as IPCom are no longer concentrating exclusively on acquiring a lot of smallish patents and collecting license fees for them. Although this approach is lucrative, at the same time it does, however, earn these firms a bad name. This is reported by the daily paper Handelsblatt on June 5, 2014. Those who are in the know about...

Once successful products dominate the market it often does not take long before the first imitation is offered on the internet. In that respect, entrepreneurs are not as defenseless as they often think. Dr. Nicolás Schmitz, intellectual property attorney at the law firm of Grünecker (Munich office), knows that sales platforms such as Amazon and...

There is scarcely another device in existence containing as many patents as a smartphone. In the cell phone industry patent suits therefore form part of the day-to-day business. Such disputes mostly take place in Germany. Patent suits are concluded faster in Germany than in the USA, and are noticeably more cost-effective, explains Dr. Bernd...

Die Patente für Elektrofahrzeuge liegen zum großen Teil nicht in Deutschland. Und schon gar nicht bei der Automobilindustrie. Bei Elektrofahrzeugen stammen 40 Prozent der Patentanmeldungen von den Top-Anmeldern. Bei Hybridfahrzeugen sind es dagegen mehr als doppelt so viel, heisst in einem Bericht der Süddeutschen Zeitung über die...

The US Supreme Court decided: Genes occurring in nature, which can easily be extracted from the DNA, are not patentable. The consequences for both existing and future patents are far-reaching – in certain circumstances not only for those aiming to protect DNA. Dr. Franz-Josef Zimmer, biochemist and patent expert at the Grünecker firm, Munich,...

Many fashion brands popular in Europe are often the target of counterfeiting. The laws of the European Union and several member states provide effective measures for combating counterfeits in the fashion field, writes Dr. Holger Gauss in an editorial for the magazine Landslide. The magazine is published by the American Bar Association (ABA) an...

The U.S. Supreme Court has decided that genes are no longer subject to US patent protection unless they have been chemically modified. The editorial team spoke to Dr. Franz-Josef Zimmer about further consequences of the judgment.

Zimmer warns that, following this decision, other natural substances, such as proteins, antibodies or micro-organisms,...

Düsseldorf District Court inquires with the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) what the procedure will be in future for disputes on standard essential patents. In the Frankfurter Allgemeine, Dr. Bernd Allekotte, Patent Litigation Expert at Grünecker, welcomes this step taken by the Düsseldorf Court. It is important to align case law,...

Indiens Oberster Gerichtshof hat den Patentschutz für das Krebsmittel Glivec abgelehnt. Das Novartis-Medikament sei keine Neuheit. Nach Einschätzung von Patentanwalt Dr. Jens Hammer von der Kanzlei Grünecker könnten die BRIC-Staaten dem Beispiel Indiens folgen, schreibt die Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. In Indien sei schon seit längerem eine...

Die Sparkassen und die spanische Banco Santander streiten vor dem Bundespatentgericht über die Verwendung der Markenfarbe Rot. Das Handelsblatt befragt Markenexpertin Anja Franke von der Kanzlei Grünecker zu den möglichen Auswirkungen einer Entscheidung. Nach Ansicht von Franke wäre eine Löschung der Farbmarke ein GAU für die Sparkassen. Eine...

Grünecker has expanded its senior management, and is appointing Anja Franke, Nicolás Schmitz and Dr. Holger Gauss partners. The information service Platow Online reports on the latter, presenting three brief profiles of the three specialist lawyers.

As per a recent survey conducted by the law firm of Grünecker, the manufacturer of sports articles, Nike, has filed far more sports clothing and sports boot patent applications than its direct competitors. This head start will be difficult for the German sports goods industry to catch up on, comments the author of the survey, Dr. Ulrich...

Grünecker ernennt die drei Fachanwälte Anja Franke, Nicolás Schmitz und Dr.

Holger Gauss zu Partnern und baut damit die Führungsspitze der Kanzlei aus.

Die Fachdienste RWS und Nomos greifen diese Nachricht auf und stellen die drei neuen Partner vor.

Venture capital investors should make sufficient capital available to start-ups to enable them to develop a portfolio of intellectual property rights. This is what Dr. Patrick Erk, Patent Attorney, from the law firm of Grünecker, points out in his third party contribution for VC-Magazin. In his article, Dr. Erk explains the options with which...

India is becoming a difficult market for the pharmaceuticals industry, comments Dr. Jens Hammer, Patent Attorney at the law firm of Grünecker, in a third party contribution for Chemanager. In his article, he points out certain peculiarities in India.

Besides the issue of requiring drug makers to mandatorily grant licenses in respect of their drug...

Judicially enforced sales prohibitions following patent disputes unsettle retailers. The specialist journal Der Handel interviews Dr. Ulrich Blumenroeder, Attorney-at-Law, of the law firm of Grünecker, about possible consequences of such sales prohibitions. Dr. Blumenroeder emphasizes that the retail industry is still in a position to continue to...

No matter whether a Granini drinking bottle, a Porsche 911 or a Birkin Bag is concerned, more and more companies are protecting the shape of their products with a 3D trademark. This protection is possible not only for new products, but also for well-established products, explains Dr. Nicolas Schmitz in a long article in the FAZ. The trademark...

Das Europäische Patentamt (EPO) hat ein wichtiges Schutzrecht des Patentverwerters IPCom für nichtig erklärt. Nur einen Tag zuvor hatte IPCom mit diesem Patent vor dem Landgericht Düsseldorf Recht bekommen und ein Verkaufsverbot für Handys von Nokia und HTC erstritten. IPCom geht gegen die Entscheidung des Patentamts in Berufung. Das Urteil aus der...

Numerous politicians are speaking out against the ACTA Convention, and that already several weeks before the voting takes place in the European Parliament. Trade associations and industry take a stance against the latter, and disapprove of withdrawing from the Anti-Piracy Convention. Dr. Holger Gauss, Attorney-at-Law specializing in Industrial...

The Indian Patent Office is forcing the pharmaceutical manufacturer Bayer to hand over the patent for its anti-cancer medication Nexavar. It is the first time a judgment to grant a compulsory license has been issued under Indian patent law regulations. Dr. Jens Hammer represents pharmaceutical companies from Europe and the USA. In the interview,...

The Indian patent authority is issuing a precedent decision against Bayer, the pharmaceutical company, granting a manufacturer of generic drugs a compulsory license for patented medication. Dr. Jens Hammer suggests that the pharmaceutical industry, which bases its products on research, will view the judgment as dispossession. According to the...

Das Pharmaunternehmen Bayer muss in Indien Generika für sein Krebsmittel akzeptieren. Diese Entscheidung des indischen Patentamts könnte für viele westliche Pharmafirmen Folgen haben. Dr. Jens Hammer befürchtet, dass auch andere Länder sich in diesem Punkt an Indien orientieren könnten und diese Entscheidung nun mit Interesse verfolgen. Besonders...

The European Commission is requesting the Court of Justice of the European Communities to assess the disputed anti-piracy convention. It is said to be possible through ACTA to combat trademark and product piracy. Dr. Holger Gauss, Attorney-at-Law specializing in Industrial Property suggests that the industry stands a better chance of asserting its...

At the Twelfth EU/India summit, besides the free trade agreement intellectual property is also to be given strength. That is of enormous significance for German businesses. In an interview with the Handelsblatt, Jens Christian Koch argues that patent law is still in the process of being developed in India. The patent attorney oftentimes goes to...

At the twelfth EU-India Summit the Indian patent law was a central topic next to free trade-related issues. The patent-law expert Jens Christian Koch detects positive developments in this area. For instance, companies from abroad can now enforce their patent rights by means of interim injunctions. There are also transparent rules regarding patent...

The 15 biggest car manufacturers worldwide published a record number of 1151 patents for electric and hybrid vehicles in 2011. This was discovered in a study conducted by the Munich law firm. From a German point of view it is particularly noticeable that the Japanese groups Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Suzuki hold a market share of about 75%; Daimler,...