The benefits often associated with government use of facial recognition technology are significant and wide-ranging. Facial recognition is promoted as being able to help stop crime by matching individuals’ images to law enforcement databases, manage access to secure areas like government buildings, remove the need for public transport ticketing systems by identifying commuters, and assist …
Expertise Archives:
Have you pivoted in response to COVID-19? Don’t let your branding spin out of control!
Many businesses have taken proactive steps to rapidly reduce costs and share precious resources in response to COVID-19. Established businesses have introduced new products (e.g. fashion designers crafting face masks instead of frocks, distilleries bottling sanitiser instead of spirits), and branched out into diverse trade channels (e.g. personal trainers providing live exercise classes online, restaurants …
Innovation Patent Perishes as Phase-Out Process Pushes Ahead
Earlier this year on 26 February 2020, legislative amendments were passed to begin phasing out the innovation patent in Australia. The process will be slow, as innovation patents can continue to be filed until 25 August 2021, and it will be 26 August 2029 before all expire. While the system’s abolishment has been in the …
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Twitter outage linked to data breach
On 15 July, Twitter announced that it had suffered a data security breach, which allowed the accounts of various world leaders and prominent individuals to be compromised. As part of its response to the breach, it shut down all ‘blue tick’ verified accounts for about an hour, which naturally triggered worldwide attention to the issue. …
COVID-19 and the new digital clinical trial era
The era of the digital clinical trial may already be upon us thanks to the impacts of COVID-19. While conceptualisations of the ‘digital patient’ and technology-integrated clinical trials were somewhat futuristic even in 2019, with COVID-19 grinding clinical trials to a halt in 2020, the life sciences industry may be forced to pivot into this …
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Medicine advertisers now independently responsible for ensuring compliance with Therapeutic Goods Legislation
As of 1 July 2020, life sciences stakeholders and pharmaceutical companies are now independently responsible for ensuring their medicine advertisements in ‘specified media’ comply with Australian Therapeutic Goods Legislation. This is instead of relying on the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) pre-approval process, which ended 30 June 2020. Under Therapeutic Goods Legislation, specified media includes magazines, …
Top tips for organisations transitioning back to ‘BAU’ from COVID-19
Key strategies that organisations can implement to help transition back to ‘business as usual’ are outlined below.
IP Australia introduces new streamlined extension of time requests in response to COVID-19 disruptions
In response to the current COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on businesses operating in Australia, IP Australia has introduced a streamlined extension of time request process to assist customers who have been adversely impacted by COVID-19. Up until at least 31 May 2020 rights holders and applicants can apply for extensions of time for up …
Full Federal Court affirms Bega’s title to Kraft peanut butter trade dress
The Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia in Kraft Foods Group Brands LLC v Bega Cheese Limited [2020] FCAFC 65 (Kraft v Bega) has upheld the decision that Kraft’s iconic peanut butter trade dress (Trade Dress) – consisting of a yellow lid, clear jar and red and blue labelling – now officially belongs …
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Copyright Agency to provide an additional $375,000 in funding to Australian artists and writers, with more funding to follow
Summary In response to the unfolding COVID-19 pandemic, the Copyright Agency has announced $375,000 in additional funding to support writers, artists and to move arts projects, festivals and events online. The Copyright Agency will also bring forward to the first quarter of the next financial year $1.8 million worth of grants under the Copyright Agency …
Privacy Act exceptions
Introduction In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, many organisations are trying to implement policies and practices that involve the collection of health information of their staff and visitors to their sites to ensure the ongoing monitoring and maintenance of healthy workplaces. This is an important approach to a public health crisis. However, there are …
COVID-19 updates for intellectual property right holders, applicants and opponents
[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Governments around the world have implemented a wide range of protocols to control the spread of COVID-19 throughout their jurisdictions. The various intellectual property offices have recognised this is an unprecedented situation that may have an impact on the ability of right holders, applicants, opponents and their representatives to meet deadlines associated with their intellectual …
Therapeutic Goods Ads Gone Bad: Rules for Industry
Facebook, Google, and other online platforms are racing to curb advertising content that inappropriately capitalises off the Coronavirus pandemic. With an influx of misinformation hitting social media, the companies are scrambling to stop advertising which exploits the public health emergency. Facebook recently prohibited advertisements that claim to prevent or cure Coronavirus, and those that generate …
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Cybersecurity a must as scammers spread infection
While Coronavirus threatens the health of people around the world, computer hackers have launched a series of attacks threatening our cybersecurity too. Coronavirus-themed scams have been reported, with hackers taking advantage of public fear associated with the virus, and workers’ decreased security due to working from home, to access personal data on victims’ computers. Know …
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Urban Ails: Federal Court cancels Urban Alley Brewery’s trade mark after legal battle with La Sirène
Last week, the Federal Court of Australia delivered judgment in Urban Alley Brewery v La Sirène[1], finding in favour of Melbourne brewer La Sirène’s cross-claim to have Melbourne brewer Urban Alley’s trade mark for URBAN ALE cancelled from the Australian Trade Marks Register. The case has implications for businesses seeking to use, register and enforce …
Australian Bushfire Declaration – your rights and obligations
WHO SHOULD READ THIS WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW On 20 January, the Attorney-General made the Privacy (Australian Bushfires Disaster) Emergency Declaration (No 1) 2020 (Declaration) under s80J of the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) (Privacy Act) as a response to bushfires in Australia resulting in death, injury and/or property damage from August 2019 into 2020. …
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Federal Court crunches down on peanut butter trade dress, preferring Bega’s smooth arguments
WHO SHOULD READ THIS THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW WHAT YOU NEED TO DO Australian brand, Bega, has won the right to use the iconic yellow lid, clear jar and red and blue labelling on its peanut butter jars, ending an extensive legal battle with American food giant Kraft. The Federal Court in Kraft Foods …
Environmental Protection Changes and Data Collection
Does this affect your agriculture business? WHO SHOULD READ THIS Graziers and grain growers across the Great Barrier Reef Catchments. THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW Agricultural producers may soon be required to meet new minimum practice standards and provide data in relation to compliance. WHAT YOU NEED TO DO Consider whether you are operating in …
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