Barbie has been loved around the world for over half a century since 1959, and now she is more than just a perfectly figured doll that comes in various themes, professions and ethnicities.“Barbie is not a character brand; it is a fashion brand that has hundreds of licensees or partners that make Barbie perfumes, Barbie shoes, cosmetics, jewelry, laptops and even hair salons,” Claire Gilchrist, Mattel’s top executive of consumer products in the Asia Pacific region, said in an interview with The K

Cigarette firms concerned over revision banning direct contribution to events and benefits

Dominique Oh notified of leave with single e-mailDominique Oh, the head of Apple Korea, stepped down last week, a move staged against his will, according to multiple industry executives Tuesday.“He was told to leave his position as general manager through an e-mail,” said a top industry executive. “The news was a shocker. I don’t know who will want the job after this.”Oh’s ouster came as a surprise as the Cupertino-based IT behemoth is currently looking forward to releasing its latest iPhone 5 h

The defense industry is projected to mark an all-time high in its weapon exports this year, according to the Korea Institute for Industrial Economics and Trade.While the nation had mostly exported ammunition and components for weapons, it recently diversified products such as self-propelled artillery and submarines.Among the major export destinations are the United Kingdom, Peru and India, KIET said in a report.The defense-related orders from abroad rapidly increased over the past few years ― fr

Whiskey consumption has continued to drop in the local market amid the economic slowdown and many consumers’ reduced preference for strong alcohol.Sales of whiskey came to 517,912 boxes ― which contain 18 bottles, 0.5 liters each ― during the July-September period, down 13.4 percent over the same period last year, according to the local liquor industry.The slowing pace has become faster compared to the 10.1 percent slowing fall, posted during the first half of the year.Diageo Korea saw its sales

One of the missions of AIPPI is to achieve the harmonization and improvement of intellectual property laws worldwide by conducting comparative legal research and formulating recommendations to entities charged with developing, interpreting or enforcing IP laws. These recommendations are referred to as the resolutions, which, because of the representative nature of the membership of AIPPI, and its working methods, are intended to be a truly worldwide answer to an intellectual property issue of cu

“Creations of the beautiful mind.” No, I am not referring to a novel I read last week.It refers to the definition of intellectual property offered by the World Intellectual Property Organization, or WIPO. “Intellectual property refers to creations of the mind: inventions, literary and artistic works, and symbols, names, images and designs used in commerce.” In the midst of the infamous “intergalactic” ongoing battle between Samsung and Apple, we tend to think that intellectual property is someth

On Saturday, about 2,000 IP specialists from throughout the world converged in Seoul for the 43rd Congress of the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property.AIPPI has members from more than 100 countries, either grouped in national groups or regional groups. Where no group exists they are independent members. Each group welcomes IP specialists of the country or region (such as lawyers, patent and trademarks attorneys, members from industry, academics and judges) and an

The 43rd World Intellectual Property Congress of AIPPI is taking place in Seoul from Saturday until Tuesday, 2012. It is the first time in 20 years that the AIPPI Congress returns to Asia. In that interval of 20 years, the economies of Korea, Japan and China have all assumed positions as leading economies in the world. During the past 20 years, the AIPPI has reformed and modernized its working methods and meetings in an effort to maintain its leading role in the study, development and harmonizat

AIPPI Congress in Seoul offers various IP sessions and workshops