Amendments to The Turkish Internet Broadcasts and Publication Law and The Controversial Application of The New Provisions
The main legislation in Turkey applying to information broadcast and published online is the Law numbered 5651 on the Regulation of Broadcasts and Publications Made Online and Regarding the Countering of Crimes Committed via These Broadcasts and Publications (Internet Publication Law) which came into effect upon publication on May 23, 2007. The Internet Publication Law introduced procedures for applying blocking orders to Internet Web sites that included content that… »
WIPOs International Registration System: What Now, What Next?
Turkey adopted the World Intellectual Property Organization’s(WI PO) international registration system in 1999. Ugur Aktekin and Pinar Arikan in Istanbul examine the successes and failures of the sys-tem since its implementation 15 years ago. Historically, the protection of trademark rights has been dependent upon territorial registration. International brands and businesses have obliged to protect their trademark rights on an individual country- by-country basis, registering… »
Use of Earlier Mark in Later Mark Does Not Always Result in Confusing Similarity
The Turkish Court of Appeals has reiterated its established precedent that the examination of confusing similarity must take into account the overall impression conveyed by the trademarks to the relevant public. In December 2007 Ital Food Industry AD filed a trademark application with the Turkish Patent Institute (TPI) for the sign reproduced below in Class 30 of the Nice Classification. The mark consisted of words in both Latin and Cyrillic characters. Turkish company Eti… »
Turkey: Turkish Patent Office Rejects A Trademark Application Due To Incorporating The Phrase “Cubano” Amongst Other Reasons
In August 2010, PC DESIGN SARL filed an application no. 2010/52790 for “cubano original eau de toilette natural spray + device” before the TPI for the goods specified in classes 03 and 33. HAVANA CLUB HOLDING S.A. (“HAVANA CLUB”) filed an opposition against the application on the grounds that the application is not registrable in accordance with Article 7/1 (c) of Decree Law, given that “it was not distinctive in the commercial industry, designated geographical origin and… »
Another Step Forward at the Turkish Electricity Market: The New Electricity Market Law
The electricity market has been one of the most active and attractive markets for investors in the last years in Turkey. With the enactment of the previous Electricity Market Law in 2001 (the Previous EML), private investment became the principie, instead of being an exception in the market. This immediately started to show positive effects in attracting private investment – 10 years ago the private sector represented a mere 38% of the electricity market, which increased to… »
Analysis of the Legal Remedies in Combating Trademark Infringement
After a series of legislative efforts in the mid and late 1990 is, all of Turkey’s IP related laws and regulations, including the Decree Law No. 556 Pertaining to the Protection of Trademarks have become compliant in almost all aspects with EU legislation. In addition to such major amendments in the laws and regulations, establishment of specialized IP Courts in major cities and structural changes within enforcement authorities and customs have enhanced the implementation of… »