The articles written by the PÚBLICO Brasil team are written in the variant of the Portuguese language used in Brazil.
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A Brazilian company achieved an important victory in Portugal. Pmais Eventos, based in Recife, Pernambuco, annulled the registration of a brand belonging to the group that had been used improperly with the Portuguese National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI). Pmais alleged plagiarism in the use of the CONIBEN seal — Ibero-American Energy Conference by EVEx (Energy Virtual Experience), belonging to Caio César Torres Cavalcanti, who had provided services to the Pernambuco firm in 2018. Contacted by email and phone, he did not speak out.
According to the INPI’s decision, Pmais Eventos and its directors are “the legitimate owners of the CONIBEN brand, the largest event in the electricity sector between Brazil, Portugal and Spain”. According to the Institute, the identity seal was inappropriately appropriated by the then doctoral student, also Brazilian, “who took advantage of access to the event project to register without the company’s knowledge”.
Pmais’ legal counsel claims that the administrative action filed at the INPI was justified based on “the basis of bad faith”, in accordance with the Portuguese Industrial Property Code. “The decision confirmed the company’s ownership of the CONIBEN brand.” The action against plagiarism was supported by the Brazilian National Intellectual Property Institute and the European Intellectual Property Office (EUIPO).
Lawyer Gustavo Escobar, who led the process, highlights that “the ruling by Portugal’s intellectual property body reflects the rigor and coherence of the country’s legal system”. He adds that the decision is also important “because it can serve, in an emblematic way, as an example for other cases, as it guarantees rights, even if the process takes place in another country”.
The owner of Pmais, Paulo Menezes, is the manager of the new Recife Convention Center, where large corporate events are held. He highlights, through the press office, that “the decision of the Portuguese INPI recognized bad faith in the registration of a brand”. He adds that the ruling “has the potential to be a landmark in future cases, because, in addition to protecting the rights of a Brazilian company, it sent a clear message about the importance of fair practices in trademark registration.”
Frequent cases
Trademark disputes have become very frequent, involving companies and even countries. Brazil, for example, managed to revive the cachaça brand that had been patented by a company in Taiwan. A group of cupuaçu producers from the state of Rondônia, with the support of Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), regained the right to use the name of the fruit after the Japanese Patent Office invalidated the registration of the “cupuaçu” brand by Japanese multinational AsahiFoods.
Açaí is also a victim of plagiarism. Fruit producers in Brazil assure that there are at least 100 processes in the world to overturn the improper registration of the name of the Brazilian delicacy. According to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), disputes over the right to use trademarks involve dozens of countries.
Açaí and cupuaçu are known for their high nutritional value. Açaí, a small purple fruit, grows on palm trees typical of the Amazon region, in Brazil and Peru. The fruit is consumed in pulp, juice and as flour. Cupuaçu, also from the northern region of Brazil, was historically consumed by indigenous people, but is currently widely used in juices, ice creams and beauty products.
