Yearly Archives: 2018

IT’S A REVOLUTION

Section 2 of the South African Copyright Act 98 of 1978 (the “Act”) states that computer programs are eligible for copyright protection in South Africa.

The South African Patents Act No. 57 of 1978 (“the Act”) does not define “inventor” per se, although it is generally understood to refer to a natural person who conceives of something novel in the context of patentability criteria.

Africa is one of the fastest growing economic regions in the world with countries with natural resources that supports industries such as mining, oil and gas, and agriculture, benefitting from increased commodity prices.

Brenda Fassie. Fifi Cooper. One being a legend whose works has lived on long after she has and the other, a rising star in the hip hop music industry. These are two very different musicians, from vastly different times and who were and are in different stages of their careers, respectively.

Tattoos are no longer taboo. From the grunge metal singer in your local bar to the CEO of a fortune 500 company, tattoos are commonplace in modern society.

Unlike other forms of intellectual property that are protected for a limited period of time, trade marks can be protected in perpetuity provided the trade marks are renewed*.

Since the start of cross-border trade, various treaties have been entered into to provide protection of a brand holder which is similar to that of the nationals of a foreign nation in respect of their intellectual property. Think TRIPS and the Madrid Protocol, to name but a few.

Businesses operating in South Africa are currently facing the imminent implementation of the Protection of Personal Information Act 4 of 2013 (POPI); however there is much debate as to whether businesses need to also comply with the EU’s counterpart to POPI, the General Data Protection Regulation