Delegates met in the hotel reception that evening to be taken to local restaurant D/S Louise, which was situated in a lovely spot by the water. After drinks outside (where heaters were plentiful, thankfully!) we moved into the restaurant for a splendid evening of incredibly good food, particularly given the numbers being catered for. Guests were treated to some of Norway’s finest salmon and an interesting goat’s cheese ice cream for dessert, which was surprisingly good! The next morning Philip Cross of Omega Insights and David Slopek of Hogan Lovells gave the first talks of the day in a double session. A fascinating insight into Philip’s 40 years of Philip Cross branding experience and some key practical advice from David on how to tackle the cluttered registers for pharmaceutical trade marks. Philip took delegates through the evolution of brand names and their David Slopek influences over time. Both Philip and David highlighted the rejection rate of pharmaceutical brand names by the FDA and EMA, and David was able to provide some useful tips on strategies to adopt for trying to deal with these. After a coffee break, delegates were provided with a truly interesting Asian update from Clement Ngai of Baker & McKenzie speaking on hot topics in China, Shwetasree Majumder of Clement Ngai Fidus Law Chambers speaking on hot topics in India and YoungJoo Song of Kim & Chang speaking on hot topics in Korea. Each speaker informed delegates of key practice points in his or her country and gave a helpful outline of trade mark law that specifically related to pharmaceuticals. In particular, Clement Ngai spoke about the difficulty of obtaining protection for a well-known trade mark in China, the requirements for drug names to be in Chinese and domain name infringement in China. Shwetasree Majumder spoke about trade mark use requirements in India and how the tests for pharmaceutical trade marks are a lot stricter. She also talked delegates through interim Shwetasree Majumde injunctions in India as well as explaining what steps are being taken in India to speed up the examination process of trade mark applications. Young-Joo Song explained the systems for trade mark registration in Korea, including expedited examination, goods and services similarity codes, information briefs and the protection of Young-Joo Song marks famous abroad. She also gave a useful explanation of the practice on medicine names in Korea, including how a trade mark registration is not required, although the drug names are usually registered as trade marks. After lunch we heard from Isabelle De Blic-Hamon of Nestlé on the topic of “From Food to Nutrition, Health and Wellness”. Isabelle provided delegates with an insider’s view of Nestlé’s Isabelle De Blic-Hamon expansion from the food and beverage industries to health and science. She advised delegates of the considerations and challenges that Nestlé faces working in the pharmaceutical field, and some of its strategies for trying to overcome them. The next speaker was Sven Freiwald of Beiersdorf, the entity behind the Nivea brand, who spoke on Sven Freiwald the subject of “The borderline between cosmetics and pharmaceuticals”. Sven highlighted the difficulty of distinguishing between cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, particularly in relation to products which have a secondary purpose and can fall across both fields. He informed delegates that the matter must be dealt with on a case by case basis, as is so often the case in trade mark law, but also that if there is any doubt then pharmaceutical legislation applies since this is stricter. To round off the conference, Marc H. Trachtenberg gave a resounding and dynamic speech on "3D Printing and its Impact on Trade Marks and Copyright". Firstly defining 3D printing more as Additive Manufacturing, Marc H. Trachtenberg Marc used video footage to demonstrate to what extent this revolution is now present across every industry from Formula 1 racing, construction and even food. The simultaneous decrease in price and increase in sophistication is bringing the technology ever closer, even right into our homes. Marc provided a detailed analysis of the various risks to IP owners in this moving environment, for example where manufacturing is so local it doesn't cross borders and thus renders enforcement more difficult. He concluded with some practical suggestions as to effective enforcement policies looking towards the future. The Chairman closed the conference by inviting us to be on time for the coaches to the Gala Dinner held at Gamle Logen, where thankfully the food served was considerably better than the additive marketing pizzas the last presentation had shown us on screen! After thanking all the speakers and sponsors, the Chairman then announced that the 2017 Autumn conference will be held in Toronto. As ever, delegates showed their enthusiasm for this destination and then enjoyed the final moments of the Oslo Autumn conference late on into the night. 94th PTMG Conference Paris 13th - 14th March 2017 Registration will open mid January 7