New Envelope of Ideas Service Launched in Romania
Published in “Getting the deal through”, 2009
Beginning with July 2008 the Romanian State Office for Inventions and Trademarks, (SOIT) is administrating a new registration service (Published in the Romanian Official Gazette, Part I, no. 527/14.07.2008 on June 23, 2008 the Order no. 63/2008 issued by for the approval of the Instructions regarding the setting of a new service managed by SOIT).
The service “Envelope with Ideas”, similar to the one that exist in France (“Envelop Soleau”) allows the deposit and registration in a non-public regime by SOIT of documents filed by their authors, natural or legal persons. Documents may be works and creations from the most diverse domains not protectable under the present legislative IP framework, as well as works protected under copyright and neighboring rights. Registration may be used to certify the filing date.
Documents that may be deposited through this service include:
• Non-patentable works;
• Works from the technical and scientifically domains, such as: technical creations, technical norms, discoveries, theories, studies, use instructions, etc;
• Literature, music works;
• Photos;
• Any artistic work or made for a presentation catalogue, regardless of the domain;
• Norms, methodologies, regulations and organizing or functioning statutes, other materials with administrative character;
• Education, instruction, entertainment, calendars, horoscopes.
The applicant is responsible for the content of the filed materials.
The deposit have to meet certain formal conditions such as to be presented on writing paper, photo paper, thin paper, tracing paper or thin cardboard, A4 format or on formats multiples of such.
The “Envelope” can be obtained from SOIT and can be filed by mail or directly. It has two identical compartments of A5 format, one to be used by the applicant and one that will be kept by SOIT. When received, SOIT registers it and sends one compartment of the envelope to the applicant.
SOIT deposits the “Envelope” for 5 years from the registration date (renewable for another period of 5 years). The taxes are of approx. EUR 40 for the first 5 years of deposit (with an additional approx. EUR 30 for renewal).
This is evidence as for the date at which the author has filed with SOIT as well as evidence of a use of an intellectual work (proof of senior existence). It does not constitute an intellectual property title, nor confer exclusive rights.
As copyrights are awarded by the Romania legislation through the mere act of creation of a work, this may ease the burden of evidence in front of a court. This raise interesting possibilities for right holders (not registered in Romania) that would intend to oppose based on copyrights to fraudulent and abusive trademark filings or to holders that would not want for various reasons (costs, burden of use, length of formalities) to file for a formal protection.
