Georgia News Archives

June 21, 2011

Change in Individual Fee Under Madrid Protocol for Georgia

The new individual fee under the Madrid Protocol for international applications designating Georgia entered into force on June 1, 2011.

As of June 1, designations made in the international application or subsequent to the international registration will cost CHF 265 (EUR 217; USD 318) for one class of goods or services and CHF 93 (EUR 76; USD 111) for each additional class.

Renewals for one class will cost CHF 265 (EUR 217; USD 318) and CHF 93 (EUR 76; USD 111) for each additional class.

The Madrid Protocol, administered by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), regulates the international registration of marks.

For more information, please contact Aleksandra Pavlovic at our Macedonia office.

Source: WIPO

Georgian Authors Society to Monitor Audio-Video Stores and Piracy Websites

The Georgian Authors’ Society plans to start actively monitoring all stores selling audio and audiovisual material and all websites offering pirated material in Georgia with an aim to put an end to the illegal distribution of music files and computer software in Georgia.

Estimates say that the illegal downloading of movies, games and mp3 tracks has resulted in a 30-40 percent decline in demand for CDs and DVDs in Georgia. The current law envisages fines ranging from EUR 205 (USD 300) to EUR 1,235 (USD 1,800) for unlicensed use, while the fines for repeated offenses range between EUR 1,235 (USD 1,800) and EUR 2,060 (USD 3,000).

The Georgian Authors’ Society Director Giga Kobaladze hopes that in 6-12 months the majority of illegal discs will disappear from the market, adding that almost all outlets currently sell pirated discs. Kobaladze notes that the legislation clearly defines the sanctions against the illegal use of audio and audiovisual material, but that consistent monitoring has never been carried out.

The National Intellectual Property Center of Georgia (SAKPATENTI) welcomes this initiative noting that there is an urgent need for improving copyright protection.

For more information, please contact Aleksandra Pavlovic at our Macedonia office.

Source: finchannel.com (The Financial)

March 24, 2011

Georgia Fights for Right to Sell Stalin's Favorite Wine in US

The National Intellectual Property Center of Georgia (SAKPATENTI) is currently in negotiations with the US company Dozortsev and Sons over the rights to sell former Soviet leader Joseph Stalin’s favorite red wine Khvanchkara in the United States. Currently, the US-based company has the exclusive right to sell this wine on the territory of the United States.

SAKPATENTI Director Irakli Gvaladze explained for AFP that Khvanchkara was produced in limited quantities in a remote region of Georgia and warned that placing monopoly over Georgian wine trademarks in the hands of one private company damages the Georgian winemakers’ interests.

Last year, the European Union and Georgia signed an agreement according to which wine companies in the EU will have to respect 18 geographical indications belonging to Georgian wines. Khvanchkara is among the 18 protected brands.

Georgian winemakers reoriented their sales to Western markets after Russia imposed an import ban on Georgian wine in 2006, claiming it did not fulfill Russia’s health standards.

For more information, please contact Aleksandra Pavlovic at our Macedonia office.

Source: French news agency Agence France-Presse (AFP)

February 23, 2011

Georgian Translation of Ninth Edition of Nice Classification Released

The Georgian National Intellectual Property Center (SAKPATENTI) has published the official Georgian translation of the Ninth Edition of the International Classification of Goods and Services under the Nice Agreement.

The Georgian translation is available in print at SAKPATENTI and it contains 45 classes and 11,600 names of goods translated into Georgian.

As stated on the website, this should greatly simplify the process for registering trademarks, help judges and attorneys in infringement proceedings and contribute toward development of modern terminology.

For more information, please contact Aleksandra Pavlovic at our Macedonia office.

Source: SAKPATENTI

October 20, 2010

Georgia World Leader in Software Piracy

According to the latest Business Software Alliance (BSA) and International Data Corporation (IDC) global software piracy report released in May 2010, Georgia is the country with the highest software piracy rate, 95 percent, with the commercial value of unlicensed software estimated at USD 22 million (EUR 16 million) in 2009.

In the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) region, Moldova (91%) and Armenia (90%) take the second and the third place, closely followed by Azerbaijan (88%), Belarus (87%), Ukraine (85%) and Montenegro (81%). Next on the list are Kazakhstan (78%), Albania (75%) and Serbia (74%), followed by Bulgaria (67%), Macedonia (67%) and Russia (67%).

After them, there are Bosnia (66%), Romania (65%), Latvia (56%), Croatia (54%), Lithuania (54%), Poland (54%) and Estonia (50%). Slovenia (46%), Slovakia (43%), Hungary (41%) and the Czech Republic (37%) are at the bottom of the list with the lowest piracy rates in the CEE region.

The CEE is the region with the highest software piracy rate globally - 64% in 2009, which is a 2% decrease from 2008. The overall global rate increased from 41% in 2008 to 43% in 2009. In CEE, the value of unlicensed software decreased from USD 7 billion (EUR 5 billion) in 2008 to USD 4.6 billion (EUR 3.3 billion) in 2009.

The report states that having strong copyright laws is not sufficient without law enforcement, education and increase in public awareness. Governments should create specialized intellectual property enforcement units on national and local levels in order to effectively enforce local copyright laws and the WIPO Copyright Treaty, it was stressed in the report.

For more information, please contact Masa Lopicic at our Balkan Regional Office.

Source: Warsaw Business Journal; BSA

August 24, 2010

Georgian Wines Get GI Status in EU

On July 29, 2010, the EU and Georgia signed an agreement according to which wine companies in the EU will have to respect 18 geographical indications on Georgian wines.

The protected Georgian wines include Khvanchkara, Tsinandali, Kindzmarauli, Saperavi, Mukuzani and Akhasheni.

Georgian winemakers reoriented their sales to Western markets after Russia imposed an import ban on Georgian wine in 2006, claiming it did not fulfill Russia’s health standards.

In return, Georgian wine producers agree not to sell sparkling wine labeled as Champagne and other EU wines with the GI status on their domestic market.

The agreement is part of EU’s strategy to export its GI system via agreements with non-EU countries. The goal is to protect EU’s best-known products from copycats, which are primarily found in emerging markets.

For more information, please contact Jelena Jankovic at our Balkan Regional Office.

Source: Trend

December 03, 2008

Georgia accedes to the Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants

By acceding to the Convention, Georgia becomes a member of the Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV), effective November 29, 2008.

The Union provides an efficient system of plant variety protection as an intellectual property right, with the aim of encouraging the development of new varieties for the benefit of society.

For more information, contact Judith Goeke in our Balkan Regional Office.

July 06, 2006

Amendments to Trademark Law of Georgia entered into force on March 1, 2006

Georgia has amended its laws on the renewal of trademark registrations.

According to the new law, the renewal application could be filed during the last year of the registration. Previously, trademark owners were allowed to file for renewal only during the last 6 months of the registration.

The new law continues to provide a 6-month grace period. Failure to file the renewal application by the end of the 6-month grace period will result in the cancellation and expiration of the registration.

Please note that the new law abolished an additional 6-month term, following the expiration of the 6-month grace period, during which the trademark owners could file a renewal application with a late payment fee.

For more information, please contact Ignacio Lazaro in our Brussels office.

July 26, 2004

Georgia joins Lisbon Agreement

On June 23, 2004, Georgia joined Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration.

The Lisbon Agreement for the Protection of Appellations of Origin and their International Registration (Lisbon Agreement), with respect to Georgia, will enter into force on September 23, 2004.

In addition to Georgia, the members of the Lisbon Agreement, the so called Lisbon Union, include Algeria, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Congo, Costa Rica, Cuba, Czech Republic, France, Gabon, Haiti, Hungary, Israel, Italy, Mexico, Portugal, Republic of Moldova, Serbia & Montenegro, Slovakia, Togo and Tunisia.

The first attempts to harmonize the different approaches and standards that governments used to register geographical indications (Gis) were found in the Paris Convention on trademarks (1883). However, it wasn’t until the 1958 Lisbon Agreement that first elaborate provisions on Gis were presented.