Brussels, 02/12/2013 (Agence Europe) - At the Competitiveness Council on Monday 2 November, the Lithuanian Presidency highlighted the progress made in the review of the trademark system in Europe but noted many differences between the national delegations.
Reservations were issued about the governance structure of the Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (OHIM) and the the level of cooperation between OHIM and national trademarks offices. The member states take the view that any such cooperation shluld be voluntary and question how this cooperation should be funded.
The Lithuanian Presidency, however, highlighted the general support from the delegations for the approach adopted in the legislative package. This approach was achieved through the recasting of the directive harmonising national laws on trademarks and a regulation on the Community trademark. The progress report illustrates that Lithuania is therefore not unduly pessimistic about reaching an agreement on this subject “in the near future”. (MD/transl.fl)