Tag: BrandProtection

Katy is a hugely successful American pop star. Her fame carried her to extraterrestrial heights and even extended briefly into outer space for an unforgettable 10 minutes and 21 seconds. Beyond her music career, she has established a suite of companies to safeguard her various commercial ventures. Killer Queen, LLC serves as the vehicle through which she protects and manages her intellectual property rights.

Digital business is the new frontier of modern entrepreneurship, and applications (apps) have become the gateway to almost every service imaginable. In a global economy driven by interconnectivity and advancing technology, start-up companies in all digital industries, particularly in FinTech, are quickly becoming the Oil and Rail industry equivalent of the 21st century.

What do vodka and pepper sauce have in common? Surprisingly, their packaging. In January 2026, the McIlhenny Company filed a lawsuit in a Texas federal court. It targeted Stoli Group (USA) LLC. The claim alleges that Stoli’s new “Halapeño Pepper” vodka infringes on TABASCO® pepper sauce trade dress. This marks the start of a spicy trade dress dispute.

The South African media have recently reported growing concern within SARS about the online promotion of so-called “luxury dupes”. Dupes are short for “duplicates” and represent products that mimic well-known luxury brands and are often promoted on TikTok, Instagram and other social platforms, but at a fraction of the price.

South Africa has officially adopted the 13th Edition of the Nice Classification (NCL 13-26) with effect from 1 January 2026. The World Intellectual Property Office implemented this edition on the same date. The Companies and Intellectual Property Commission (CIPC) gave notice through Practice Note 3 of 2025, published on 9 December 2025. The notice confirms that the updated classification applies to all trademark specifications from 1 January 2026.