- Impact
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Posted for reference. There is an FAQ, definitions and case studies in the UN document.
I have paid zero attention to this acronym "GI" being used recently and it's significance, until these PDF links below were posted. GI's are now being discussed in the ICANN RPM working group. Regionally "Protected" names it seems to be another "gotcha"- that one needs to consider before registering certain of these types domains.
News to me, I obviously not an IP Lawyer, but there are plenty bringing this subject up and debating.
I recall seeing someone mention here on the forum "Bordeaux" Wine and Roquefort Cheese have some sort of liability or legal protection. Well the net is cast wider than that, who knows if it will increase too.
Here is a PDF below if anyone wants to educate themselves on more issues about owning certain Geo-Product specific domains.
GUIDE TO GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
LINKING PRODUCTS AND THEIR ORIGINS
Some snippets:
"There are currently more than 10,000 protected Geographical Indications or GIs in the world with an estimated trade value of more than US$ 50 billion. Many are well-known names such as Darjeeling tea, Bordeaux wine, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and Idaho potatoes. Yet many more are less known and often unprotected. About 90% of GIs come from the 30 OECD countries while in most of the more than 160 other countries, very few have been developed. GIs are now increasingly perceived as an opportunity
in many countries that have unique physical and cultural attributes that can be translated into product differentiation. These physical and cultural assets form the basic value-giving characteristics upon which GIs are built."
"Darjeeling tea, Parmigiano cheese, Bordeaux wine, Kobe beef, Idaho potatoes, Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee, and Tequila are just some of the more popular Geographical Indications (GIs). GIs are associated with unique products that embody rich cultures and history. They can also be lucrative billion-dollar businesses and as popular as any international brand names. Yet, until now, we’ve known very little about these unique forms of intellectual and cultural property and their potential to provide a sustainable means of competitiveness even for remote regions of developing countries."
"Fragmented, overlapping and nebulous systems of protection, combined with the lack of a single or common coherent international approach, or even a registry, make it difficult to secure protection in overseas markets. Securing legal protection in the major markets such as the United States and the EU typically requires using different regimes with diverse requirements. Similarly, a variety of different terms such as marks, certifications, denominations and appellations are used in intellectual property discussions. However, it is not always clear how to distinguish which of these terms is most relevant, and how to apply them appropriately, since some are used interchangeably and others only with certain products, or in certain parts of the world.
Of the 167 countries that protect GIs as a form of intellectual property, 111 (including the EU 27) have specific or sui generis systems of GI laws in place. 26 There are 56 countries using a trademark system, rather than or in addition to specific GI protection laws. 27 These countries utilize certification marks, collective marks or trademarks to protect GIs"
Case studies are on Hawaiian Kona Coffee, Blue Mountain Coffee, Tea, Camel Wool, etc.
Page 125- example:
Box 6.5
Ethiopia coffee case – GI protection In response to the increasing use of Ethiopian names for marketing purposes in other countries (i.e. Panama and the
United States) and the widening gap between export and retail prices, the Government of Ethiopia undertook protection of its three most notable coffees with regional names. It elected to register ‘Yirgacheffe’, ‘Harrar’ and ‘Sidamo’ as trademarks in a number of countries, thereby claiming exclusive ownership rights to those GIs. The case attracted considerable international attention (the BBC, The Economist, the London Times) because part of the United States coffee industry objected to the chosen form of protection. While some countries, including EU members, approved all three trademarks (pending final review by Member States), the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) initially denied registration for two of them on the basis that they were merely geographically descriptive and did not have a “secondary meaning” or “acquired distinctiveness”. All were subsequently granted.
https://www.origin-gi.com/images/stories/PDFs/English/E-Library/geographical_indications.pdf
https://www.origin-gi.com/images/stories/PDFs/English/E-Library/geographical_indications.pdf
[URL]https://www.uspto.gov/sites/default/files/web/offices/dcom/olia/globalip/pdf/gi_system.pdf[/URL]
I have paid zero attention to this acronym "GI" being used recently and it's significance, until these PDF links below were posted. GI's are now being discussed in the ICANN RPM working group. Regionally "Protected" names it seems to be another "gotcha"- that one needs to consider before registering certain of these types domains.
News to me, I obviously not an IP Lawyer, but there are plenty bringing this subject up and debating.
I recall seeing someone mention here on the forum "Bordeaux" Wine and Roquefort Cheese have some sort of liability or legal protection. Well the net is cast wider than that, who knows if it will increase too.
Here is a PDF below if anyone wants to educate themselves on more issues about owning certain Geo-Product specific domains.
GUIDE TO GEOGRAPHICAL INDICATIONS
LINKING PRODUCTS AND THEIR ORIGINS
Some snippets:
"There are currently more than 10,000 protected Geographical Indications or GIs in the world with an estimated trade value of more than US$ 50 billion. Many are well-known names such as Darjeeling tea, Bordeaux wine, Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, and Idaho potatoes. Yet many more are less known and often unprotected. About 90% of GIs come from the 30 OECD countries while in most of the more than 160 other countries, very few have been developed. GIs are now increasingly perceived as an opportunity
in many countries that have unique physical and cultural attributes that can be translated into product differentiation. These physical and cultural assets form the basic value-giving characteristics upon which GIs are built."
"Darjeeling tea, Parmigiano cheese, Bordeaux wine, Kobe beef, Idaho potatoes, Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee, and Tequila are just some of the more popular Geographical Indications (GIs). GIs are associated with unique products that embody rich cultures and history. They can also be lucrative billion-dollar businesses and as popular as any international brand names. Yet, until now, we’ve known very little about these unique forms of intellectual and cultural property and their potential to provide a sustainable means of competitiveness even for remote regions of developing countries."
"Fragmented, overlapping and nebulous systems of protection, combined with the lack of a single or common coherent international approach, or even a registry, make it difficult to secure protection in overseas markets. Securing legal protection in the major markets such as the United States and the EU typically requires using different regimes with diverse requirements. Similarly, a variety of different terms such as marks, certifications, denominations and appellations are used in intellectual property discussions. However, it is not always clear how to distinguish which of these terms is most relevant, and how to apply them appropriately, since some are used interchangeably and others only with certain products, or in certain parts of the world.
Of the 167 countries that protect GIs as a form of intellectual property, 111 (including the EU 27) have specific or sui generis systems of GI laws in place. 26 There are 56 countries using a trademark system, rather than or in addition to specific GI protection laws. 27 These countries utilize certification marks, collective marks or trademarks to protect GIs"
Case studies are on Hawaiian Kona Coffee, Blue Mountain Coffee, Tea, Camel Wool, etc.
Page 125- example:
Box 6.5
Ethiopia coffee case – GI protection In response to the increasing use of Ethiopian names for marketing purposes in other countries (i.e. Panama and the
United States) and the widening gap between export and retail prices, the Government of Ethiopia undertook protection of its three most notable coffees with regional names. It elected to register ‘Yirgacheffe’, ‘Harrar’ and ‘Sidamo’ as trademarks in a number of countries, thereby claiming exclusive ownership rights to those GIs. The case attracted considerable international attention (the BBC, The Economist, the London Times) because part of the United States coffee industry objected to the chosen form of protection. While some countries, including EU members, approved all three trademarks (pending final review by Member States), the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) initially denied registration for two of them on the basis that they were merely geographically descriptive and did not have a “secondary meaning” or “acquired distinctiveness”. All were subsequently granted.
https://www.origin-gi.com/images/stories/PDFs/English/E-Library/geographical_indications.pdf
https://www.origin-gi.com/images/stories/PDFs/English/E-Library/geographical_indications.pdf
[URL]https://www.uspto.gov/sites/default/files/web/offices/dcom/olia/globalip/pdf/gi_system.pdf[/URL]
