Europe: Intellectual Property

In two separate decisions handed down on the same day, the Court of Appeal of the Unified Patent Court (UPC) imposed a licensing bar on certain employees of the defendants...

Italy is implementing significant amendments to its Cultural Heritage Law that will take effect in April 2026, fundamentally reshaping the export certificate regime for artworks. These changes include raising value thresholds, extending validity periods, and introducing new protections for foreign artists' works, all designed to reduce administrative burdens while maintaining cultural heritage safeguards.

Regulation on Intellectual and Industrial Property Rights of the TENMAK has been newly published.

Video sharing platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo and TikTok have become primary channels for the distribution of creative work, providing access to a wide range of user-generated content. Those platforms give significant access to cultural and creative works by creating opportunities to develop innovative business models within the cultural and creative industries. However, while facilitating the availability and diversity of content, they also pose legal challenges when copyrighted content is placed on platforms without the prior approval of the copyright holders.

Turkey has submitted a new bill to parliament that would require large digital platforms to pay royalties to media organizations for using their news content. The legislation establishes a dispute resolution mechanism and imposes significant penalties on platforms that fail to comply, with administrative fines potentially reaching up to 10% of annual digital service revenue generated in Turkey.

Turkey's parliament has received a new legislative proposal addressing digital copyright and online news content, establishing obligations for major digital platforms operating in the country. The bill introduces mandatory copyright payments to media organizations, creates a dispute resolution mechanism, and sets forth significant penalties for non-compliance with transparency and fair dealing requirements.

Holger Gensmantel, Head of Trademarks, shares how Questel supports the brand defense strategy at Carl Zeiss AG, and the benefits of integrating online brand protection with advanced trademark search tools.

Counterfeiting is not an abstract threat for brands like Louis Vuitton. It is an everyday reality. LV's signature monogram and its iconic brown-and-gold palette are among the most copied visual identities in the world. Protecting them is not optional, it is existential. But as LV's enforcement record grows, so does a more complicated question: where does protection end and overclaiming begin?

In today’s innovation-driven economy, intellectual property is one of the most valuable corporate assets. For companies in technology, pharmaceuticals, and advanced manufacturing, intangible assets—including patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets—often represent a significant portion of enterprise value.

Legal interest in revocation proceedings must be examined by the Court of its own motion, even where the defendant does not challenge admissibility (headnote 1; para. 11)

Long-arm jurisdiction via Art. 8 (1) Brussel Ia Recast Regulation (BR): The “risk of irreconcilable judgements” requires a four-part assessment: same factual and legal situation, predictability and no abuse

When assessing novelty, the Court will examine the disclosure of the prior art document overall and will compare this disclosure to the scope of the patent-in-suit. If one way of “mapping” leads...