As countries struggle over intellectual property in this world rocked by novel coronavirus COVID-19, Intellectual property institutions need to forge ahead. The Japan Patent Office (JPO) has been conducting committee meetings aiming to improve its intellectual property environment, and issued…
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On January 7, 2021, parts of the Tokyo metropolitan area were declared under a state of emergency by the Japanese government. The following day, the Japan Patent Office announced it would close its main entrance from January 12 and generally…
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* This is a follow-up article to earlier reports shared on October 8, 2020. In spite of earlier reports suggesting that the JPO might relieve all filings of the requirement for Japanese patent, trademark, and other IP filers to use…
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Further to the passing in the Lower House, the Upper House (House of Councillors) of Japan’s National Diet (parliament) debated and passed the revisions to the Plant Variety Protection and Seed Act (“Plant and Seed Act”) on December 2, 2020.[1]…
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* See a further update on this issue from December 3, 2020. As many cases of plant varieties developed in Japan being sold to producers in other countries and exploited have arisen (see on past governmental plans and a case…
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In the wake of Brexit, the United Kingdom and Japan have concluded a new Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) that covers cooperation and fair treatment for each other’s intellectual property. The agreement, signed on October 23, 2020, replaces for dealings between…
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The Japanese national Diet enacted revisions to the Copyright Act (chosakuken-hoh) in June 5, 2020 (issue: June 12, 2020). The actual changes have begun to go into effect on the 1st of the present October, and further changes to enforcement…
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In 2006, Japan introduced a program for trademarks that were collective (compare with US collective marks) and regional indications (compare with European RIs), the chiiki dantai shōhyō seido (地域団体商標制度). Translated as the Regional Collective Trademark (RCT) System, this arrangement seeks…
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The Japanese Prime Minister’s Cabinet Intellectual Property Strategy Headquarters issued its annual Intellectual Property Strategic Program 2020 in early June. This year, the 160-document acts as a manifesto for the Japanese government to boost Japan’s financial and economic future through…
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The Japan Patent Office (JPO) decided, on April 3, 2020, to provide a wide range of remedies for most of the missed deadlines for those who have been affected by the COVID-19 related restrictions. It is still recommended for our…
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