With reference to our previous newsletter on the new Customs Department Notification for Controlling the Exportation, importation and Transiting of Goods Infringing Trademarks and Copyright (Customs Department Notification No. 106/2565),

On 27 July 2022 the Thai Customs Department issued a new Notification for Controlling the Exportation, Importation and Transiting of Goods Infringing Trademarks and Copyright (Customs Department Notification No. 106/2565). The salient points of this new notification are as follows.

It is common for businesses to adopt their founders’ personal names and/or surnames as trademarks to exploit reputations attached to the said names, especially for celebrities, singers, actors, and designers.

In preparation for Thailand's acceding to the World Intellectual Property Organization Copyright Treaty (WCT), the amendment to the Copyright Act has been discussed for several years. Finally, on February 24, 2022, the Copyright Act (No. 5) B.E. 2565 (2022) (“the Amended Copyright Act”) was published in the Royal Thai Gazette with an effective date of August 23, 2022, marking the fifth amendment since the implementation of the Act in 1994.

In January 2022, the Department of Intellectual Property introduced the new trademark examination guideline to improve the examination standard in line with the precedents from the Trademark Board and the Courts as well as the intentional practices.

The Department of Intellectual Property (DIP) has been in the process of revising the 41-year old Thai Patent Act B.E. 2522 which was amended since 1992 and 1999.