1. Protection of «FOOD PRESENTATION» in the MENA REGION
Presented by: Ramzi Tarazi
APPIMAF - SABA IP
VALUE and PROTECTION
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

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OUTLINE
I. INTRODUCTION: Middle Eastern Cuisine
II. IP PROTECTION
1. Copyright Law
a. General Information
b. Criteria for Protection
c. Preliminary Supposition
2. Trademark Law
c. Famous Trademarks
3. Industrial Design Law
III. CASE STUDY: What about SHAKERMANJI?
IV. STATISTICS
V. CONCLUSION
Work on an outline
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

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Hummus
Manakeesh
Falafel
Tabouleh
Fattoush
Moutabal/baba ghanoush
Shish tawook
Kafta
Mansaf
Baklava
Knafeh
Shawarma
INTRODUCTION: Middle Eastern Cuisine
Work on an outline
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INTRODUCTION: Middle Eastern Cuisine
Youssef Akiki
Rouba Khalil
Georges Berberi
Georges El Kik
Reem Azoury
Abdallah Khoder
This presentation examines whether chefs can protect the artistic presentation or plating of their dishes under copyright laws, trademark laws, or design laws of our region
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

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INTRODUCTION: Middle Eastern Cuisine
Work on an outline
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

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II. IP PROTECTION:
1. Copyright Protection: Can artistic food plating fulfill copyright’s requirement of being an original work?
2. Trade Dress Protection: Can artistic food plating function as protectable trade dress?
3. Industrial Design Protection: Can artistic food plating be protected as an industrial design?
Can chefs protect the artistic presentation or plating of their dishes under copyright laws, trademark laws, and design laws of our region?
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

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II. IP PROTECTION: Copyright – General Information
Members of Berne Convention except for Gaza, Iran, Iraq and West Bank.
Members of the WTO which extends to the TRIPS agreement.
Copyright laws introduced in all countries, either by their own codes or by including them in general codes, except for Gaza, West Bank and Libya
Berne contains a series of provisions determining the minimum copyright protection to be granted in the member states as well as special provisions available to developing countries which would make use of them. Clearly, membership in the Berne Convention helps significantly on the litigation front, as evidenced in a number of ground-breaking Court decisions which were reached during the past several years in the Middle East region signaling a positive change for copyright holders.
- TRIPS, Part II addresses each intellectual property right in succession. With respect to copyright and related rights, parties are required to comply with the substantive provisions of the Berne Convention for the protection of literary and artistic works, in its latest version.
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II. IP PROTECTION: Copyright – Criteria for Protection
Originality
The design should be creative enough to meet the originality standard of copyright law.
Recorded in a material form
There is a “fixation” requirement – tangible medium of expression.
Berne contains a series of provisions determining the minimum copyright protection to be granted in the member states as well as special provisions available to developing countries which would make use of them. Clearly, membership in the Berne Convention helps significantly on the litigation front, as evidenced in a number of ground-breaking Court decisions which were reached during the past several years in the Middle East region signaling a positive change for copyright holders.
- TRIPS, Part II addresses each intellectual property right in succession. With respect to copyright and related rights, parties are required to comply with the substantive provisions of the Berne Convention for the protection of literary and artistic works, in its latest version.
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

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II. IP PROTECTION: Copyright – Preliminary Supposition
May meet originality but likely not entitled to protection because of the fixation requirement.
File in countries where examination is performed on formal grounds only – Lebanon and Oman. “Extend” via Berne Convention.
Berne contains a series of provisions determining the minimum copyright protection to be granted in the member states as well as special provisions available to developing countries which would make use of them. Clearly, membership in the Berne Convention helps significantly on the litigation front, as evidenced in a number of ground-breaking Court decisions which were reached during the past several years in the Middle East region signaling a positive change for copyright holders.
- TRIPS, Part II addresses each intellectual property right in succession. With respect to copyright and related rights, parties are required to comply with the substantive provisions of the Berne Convention for the protection of literary and artistic works, in its latest version.
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

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II. IP PROTECTION: Trade Dress – General Information
There are no specific requirements when it comes to the registration of marks in classes 29 and 30
Searches between related classes, namely classes 29 and 30, are not performed on an ex-officio basis.
Cross examination is not performed unless we are dealing with a famous mark
All countries are members of the Paris Convention
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II. IP PROTECTION: Trade Dress – Criteria for Protection
Simple trademark application
Distinctiveness and functionality
It may be possible to register aspects of the shape of the product or its
packaging as 3D trademarks. A 3D mark can receive similar protection
under the laws of our region as any other trademark, and a simple
trademark application can be filed for this purpose.
The difficulty would basically arise at the time of substantive examination,
where practice differs considerably between the countries. In some
countries, the application for a product shape as a trademark will be
accepted without any objection as long as the product appearance has the
requisite distinctive character for registration. This means that the more
closely the mark resembles the shape most likely to be taken by the
product in question, the greater the likelihood of the mark being devoid
of any distinctive character. The Trademark Offices of Saudi Arabia and
Kuwait often issue office actions of this type. In few other countries, a
product shape will not be accepted as a trademark if the print includes no
core word marks. Also, if the appearance of the product is functional,
protection may be barred completely. The most probable reason is to
maintain a balance between trademark laws and design laws, the latter
being used to protect products having some patentable function.
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

12. II. IP PROTECTION: Trade Dress – Famous Trademarks
Article 6bis
duration & geographic extent of sales
sales figures
advertising figures & samples of advertising
awards, reviews & press reports
reputation of mark within relevant trade & consumer groups
expert testimony & surveys
It may be possible to register aspects of the shape of the product or its
packaging as 3D trademarks. A 3D mark can receive similar protection
under the laws of our region as any other trademark, and a simple
trademark application can be filed for this purpose.
The difficulty would basically arise at the time of substantive examination,
where practice differs considerably between the countries. In some
countries, the application for a product shape as a trademark will be
accepted without any objection as long as the product appearance has the
requisite distinctive character for registration. This means that the more
closely the mark resembles the shape most likely to be taken by the
product in question, the greater the likelihood of the mark being devoid
of any distinctive character. The Trademark Offices of Saudi Arabia and
Kuwait often issue office actions of this type. In few other countries, a
product shape will not be accepted as a trademark if the print includes no
core word marks. Also, if the appearance of the product is functional,
protection may be barred completely. The most probable reason is to
maintain a balance between trademark laws and design laws, the latter
being used to protect products having some patentable function.
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II. IP PROTECTION: Trade Dress – Likelihood of Confusion
The appearance, pronunciation, meaning, and commercial impression of the respective marks
Relatedness of goods
Sophistication of consumers
It may be possible to register aspects of the shape of the product or its
packaging as 3D trademarks. A 3D mark can receive similar protection
under the laws of our region as any other trademark, and a simple
trademark application can be filed for this purpose.
The difficulty would basically arise at the time of substantive examination,
where practice differs considerably between the countries. In some
countries, the application for a product shape as a trademark will be
accepted without any objection as long as the product appearance has the
requisite distinctive character for registration. This means that the more
closely the mark resembles the shape most likely to be taken by the
product in question, the greater the likelihood of the mark being devoid
of any distinctive character. The Trademark Offices of Saudi Arabia and
Kuwait often issue office actions of this type. In few other countries, a
product shape will not be accepted as a trademark if the print includes no
core word marks. Also, if the appearance of the product is functional,
protection may be barred completely. The most probable reason is to
maintain a balance between trademark laws and design laws, the latter
being used to protect products having some patentable function.
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

14. Applications with multiple figures
II. IP PROTECTION: Industrial Design – General Information
Laws
Laws introduced in almost all countries.
Protection Term
On average 5 to 15 years
Applications with multiple figures
Possible for all countries except Gaza, Saudi Arabia, UAE, West Bank and Yemen
It may be possible to register aspects of the shape of the product or its
packaging as 3D trademarks. A 3D mark can receive similar protection
under the laws of our region as any other trademark, and a simple
trademark application can be filed for this purpose.
The difficulty would basically arise at the time of substantive examination,
where practice differs considerably between the countries. In some
countries, the application for a product shape as a trademark will be
accepted without any objection as long as the product appearance has the
requisite distinctive character for registration. This means that the more
closely the mark resembles the shape most likely to be taken by the
product in question, the greater the likelihood of the mark being devoid
of any distinctive character. The Trademark Offices of Saudi Arabia and
Kuwait often issue office actions of this type. In few other countries, a
product shape will not be accepted as a trademark if the print includes no
core word marks. Also, if the appearance of the product is functional,
protection may be barred completely. The most probable reason is to
maintain a balance between trademark laws and design laws, the latter
being used to protect products having some patentable function.
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II. IP PROTECTION: Industrial Design – Criteria for Protection
Novelty
Non-obviousness
It may be possible to register aspects of the shape of the product or its
packaging as 3D trademarks. A 3D mark can receive similar protection
under the laws of our region as any other trademark, and a simple
trademark application can be filed for this purpose.
The difficulty would basically arise at the time of substantive examination,
where practice differs considerably between the countries. In some
countries, the application for a product shape as a trademark will be
accepted without any objection as long as the product appearance has the
requisite distinctive character for registration. This means that the more
closely the mark resembles the shape most likely to be taken by the
product in question, the greater the likelihood of the mark being devoid
of any distinctive character. The Trademark Offices of Saudi Arabia and
Kuwait often issue office actions of this type. In few other countries, a
product shape will not be accepted as a trademark if the print includes no
core word marks. Also, if the appearance of the product is functional,
protection may be barred completely. The most probable reason is to
maintain a balance between trademark laws and design laws, the latter
being used to protect products having some patentable function.
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

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III. CASE STUDY: What about SHAKERMANJI?
Video
Work on an outline
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IV. STATISTICS
Work on an outline
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A number of factor would affect our decision in choosing the best filing strategy including budget constraints , level of risk the applicant is willing to take and the protection term required.
It would be useful in some cases to file an application for copyright in countries where examination in performed on formal grounds only (Lebanon). This also applies to trademark and designs.
Even though chefs may have these options under intellectual property law, they are not guaranteed to prevail in an infringement action, nor would chefs necessarily want to use intellectual property laws to protect their dishes in light of the accepted culture of sharing and borrowing in the cuisine industry.
V. CONCLUSION
It may be possible to register aspects of the shape of the product or its
packaging as 3D trademarks. A 3D mark can receive similar protection
under the laws of our region as any other trademark, and a simple
trademark application can be filed for this purpose.
The difficulty would basically arise at the time of substantive examination,
where practice differs considerably between the countries. In some
countries, the application for a product shape as a trademark will be
accepted without any objection as long as the product appearance has the
requisite distinctive character for registration. This means that the more
closely the mark resembles the shape most likely to be taken by the
product in question, the greater the likelihood of the mark being devoid
of any distinctive character. The Trademark Offices of Saudi Arabia and
Kuwait often issue office actions of this type. In few other countries, a
product shape will not be accepted as a trademark if the print includes no
core word marks. Also, if the appearance of the product is functional,
protection may be barred completely. The most probable reason is to
maintain a balance between trademark laws and design laws, the latter
being used to protect products having some patentable function.
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano

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THANK YOU
22 giugno 2015 – Food Design: valore e tutela – Milano