Region: Africa & Middle East

The Supreme Court has dismissed First National Bank of Southern Africa's application to register the words 'premier' and 'premier package' for banking and financial services. The court held that although it is possible for these words to acquire distinctiveness through use, they cannot be registered because they are reasonably required for use in the trade.

01 May 2003

In <i>Eli Lilly and Company v Salenab Nigeria Limited</i>, the Federal High Court of Nigeria has overturned the decision of the registrar of trademarks to register eight marks that are identical or confusingly similar to marks owned by Eli Lilly. In reaching this decision, the court rejected expert testimony.

01 April 2003

In <i>Alon Fuel Company for Israel Ltd v Energy International Ltd</i>, the District Court of Jerusalem has held that the registration of a trademark constitutes merely <i>prima facie</i> evidence of the mark's validity. Therefore, the registration of a trademark may be challenged.

25 March 2003

In <i>Zer.4.U.(2000) Ltd v A Sderot Hen Flowers</i>, a district court has enjoined the defendant from using the domain name 'zer4me.co.il' on the basis that the plaintiff is the registered owner of the mark ZER4U. This is despite the fact that the plaintiff's registration includes a clause stating that the terms '<i>zer</i>', '4' and 'u' may be registered by others.

20 March 2003

In <i>South African Football Association v Stanton Woodrush (Pty) Ltd</i>, the South African Supreme Court of Appeal has dismissed the plaintiff's claim that it owns the BAFANA BAFANA trademark in relation to all goods, including clothing. The term '<i>bafana bafana</i>' means 'the boys, the boys' and has been the nickname of the national football team since 1992.

04 March 2003

In <i>Super Pharm (Israel) Ltd v Club Pharm Ltd</i>, the District Court for Tel-Aviv-Jaffa has upheld Super Pharm's claim for passing off based on Club Pharm's use of colours for its logo identical to those used by Super Pharm for its logo.

20 January 2003

The UAE Federal Trademark Law has been amended to extend the protection afforded to trademark owners, particularly owners of well-known trademarks. In addition, several obligations under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights have been satisfied.

13 November 2002

UAE Network Information Centre has introduced a new policy, effective on September 15, which allows individuals to register country-code top-level domain names. UAE companies had until then to register their brand names and trademarks in the '.ae' domain space so as to avoid future claims of cybersquatting.

20 September 2002

A WIPO committee investigating the use of geographical names as domain names has concluded that most governments believe that country names deserve protection against registration or use by persons unconnected with the country in question. This supports South Africa's claim that geographical names are part of a country's sovereignty and has significant bearing on its fight for 'southafrica.com'.

10 September 2002

South Africa's Parliament has approved a law designed to expand access to the Internet, but critics say it could force the network to shut down in the country. The new Electronic Communications and Transactions Act regulates all electronic transactions and communications, and provides for the administration of the '.za' domain to be taken over by a government body without seeking the approval of ICANN.

08 July 2002