My thoughts and ideas Essay

Firstly I would like to congratulate you on your excellent audition for the part of Juliet. As time is limited and due to our individual work commitments, we are unable to meet up before rehearsals begin. Therefore, as the stage director I thought it maybe helpful to discuss some of my thoughts and ideas for the play and give you some background information that will be useful in helping you prepare for the part of Juliet. Shakespeares’s Romeo and Juliet was written during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I although it is unknown exactly when it was set. During this time people were taught that there was a divine way of doing things and that God has instituted a church and ordained a monarchy so that the people could be ruled over in a proper way. Despite the country being ruled by a powerful woman, women had very little freedom socially, economically or legally. At the time of this play marriages were comparably different to today’s idea of marriage. Firstly the common age for girls to be married was fourteen and they had little or no say in the choice of husbands who were often chosen by families. Husbands were often chosen for their status in society so they could be rich and powerful allies to a family. Within families the father ruled over the wife and children just as the monarch did over the state. Religion played an important part in everyday life and children were taught about their duty to God and attendance at Church services was compulsory. Services were carried out by licensed clergy. This meant that the authorities were able to keep checks on citizens and monitor conformity. Julia, at this point a brief overview of the play maybe useful to you. Essentially it is about two chief families in Verona, the rich and noble Capulets and the Montagues. An old feud between the two families had grown in deep hatred that affected not only the family members but also anyone associated with each household, including the staff. Chance meeting often led to brawls and bloodshed disturbing the quietness of the streets of Verona. Romeo is a Montague and Juliet is a Capulet. The play is a tragedy and the main theme is love and hatred. The first two scenes in Act 1 set the scene for the play and are mainly about the males and establishes the violence between the two families. Your first appearance as Juliet in this production is in Act 1 scene III. This scene is very important as we meet the main female character and two others: Lady Capulet who has a rather formal and distant relationship with her daughter and the nurse who is Juliet’s carer. We learn that Juliet is nearly fourteen years old in the play. In Act I Scene III Lady Capulet asks the nurse to summon Juliet then Lady Capulet asks the nurse to leave her and Juliet alone as they â€Å"must talk in secret† but then immediately asks her to â€Å"come back† as she has known Juliet from a young age. This demonstrates the nurse’s closeness to Juliet and the Capulet family. It also establishes her importance in the play. I would like you to portray Juliet as the young, polite and quiet girl she appears to be at this point although as we know her character changes after she meets Romeo. In Act 1 scene III Juliet is respectful and polite to her mother in a formal way. This is clearly demonstrated when Juliet replies to Lady Capulet after being summoned, â€Å"Madam, I am here, what is your will? † You should speak these words in a quiet soft voice and you could make direct eye contact with Lady Capulet before looking away towards the Nurse so the audience sense Juliet’s respectful but shy nature. Lady Capulet appears to want to stick to convention and asks Juliet to agree to look at a possible husband during the feast that night at the Capulet’s home. Lady Capulet reminds Juliet that she was the same age as Juliet when she gave birth to her. â€Å"By my count I was your mother much upon these years† and that girls younger than Juliet were â€Å"already mothers. † The nurse is present throughout this conversation and establishes her importance in the play. She cares for Juliet as she almost replaced the nurse’s own daughter who had died. At this point the nurse starts to tell stories about Juliet as a baby. Juliet is embarrassed particularly when she recalls how she got her to stop breastfeeding. There are some sexual implications in the nurse’s speech here and you need to show the shock and embarrassment that the naive Juliet will feel. We know that she has cared for Juliet since she was a baby as she talks about her childhood. You need to portray Juliet’s embarrassment about her childhood stories. The Nurse explains that it would be an â€Å"honour† to see her married. You may be taken by surprise at the abrupt way the question of marriage is asked by Lady Capulet. â€Å"Speak briefly can you like of Paris’ love? † You will need to convey that although Juliet’s in awe of Lady Capulet she seeks parental approval. So even though Juliet has not met Paris before and does not know whether she can love him she agrees to look at him during the festivities that night. After a quick glance at the nurse again I want you to pause slightly before replying to Lady Capulet in a soft, formal manner, â€Å"I’ll look to like, if looking like move But no more deep will I endart mine eye Than your consent gives strength to make it fly† This shows Juliet’s willingness to do as her mother says. The audience should sense your anxiety in anticipation of Lady Capulet’s response and then the relief you feel, when as you finish your sentence, Lady Capulet smiles with approval at your response. In Juliet’s reply there is some mirroring of language between her and Lady Capulet, words such as â€Å"look† and â€Å"like. † This adds to the idea that at this point Juliet is willing and keen to get approval from her mother. As Lady Capulet and the nurse leave you can show further relief as you relax the animated posture and drop your shoulders. After a few seconds you could portray a sense of excitement and anticipation of the dinner. The lights fade as you jauntily exit the stage. The next scene that Juliet appears in is Act 1 Scene V. In this scene Romeo and Juliet meet for the first time. Romeo spots Juliet while standing to the side during the dancing at the banquet. He immediately falls in love with her. Romeo is so struck by Juliet’s beauty he is inspired to speak a monologue in tribute. He uses light and dark imagery to stress her beauty. He says it seemed to him that she could â€Å"teach torches to burn bright† and â€Å"she hangs upon the cheek of night as a rich jewel in an Ethiop’s ear†. Shakespeare continues this theme of light and dark imagery by using metaphors such as â€Å"snowy dove trooping with crows† to demonstrate how Juliet shines above the other ladies there. Though Romeo is awestruck by your perfection you are unaware that you are being watched so you continue to dance in the background however your movements must be light, graceful but spirited to convey your youthful innocence. Shakespeare uses metaphors to create a positive image about Juliet’s beauty. Romeo also describes Juliet’s beauty as â€Å"To rich for use, for earth to dear! † This is one of the many references to the theme of wealth in the play. This scene will be challenging for any actress as you are on the stage all the time. Eventually Romeo finds Juliet and touches her hand. At this point I want you to look at his hand and then slowly wonder your gaze up to make eye contact with Romeo. This is an electrifying point in the play and as such the audience need to be made to actually feel the sudden love at first sight. You and Romeo speak in a sonnet form to one another. Your tone is soft and flirtatious yet clear and precise. This makes the verse more noticeably poetic and allows the audience to believe in your love. At this point you are at the centre of the audience’s attention but you need to be totally focussed onto Romeo’s face. You need to make the audience believe they are almost intruding into your emotions and feelings. They need to sense the strength of your love. This is a very significant part in the production as Romeo and Juliet do not know each others status but the audience do. The audience will realise that it will be impossible for Romeo and Juliet to be together despite their passionate love for each other. This is known as dramatic irony as the audience knows something that the characters do not. Around you the festivities will be continuing with the other actors, dining and dancing. You and Romeo are totally engrossed in each other so much so that you do not notice that Tybalt has recognised Romeo as a Montague and is forced to restrain himself by Capulet not to cause a brawl in the middle of the festivities. Romeo eventually gets to kiss Juliet â€Å"Let lips do what hands do† that is join together. The poetry in lines 92-109 is between Romeo and Juliet. They share the same images and thoughts and their words flow together giving us the idea that they complete each other. The content of the sonnet has a religious theme and is an example of how religion is related to love. It uses imagery of saints and pilgrims. Romeo takes Juliet’s hand in the gentlest manner calling it a â€Å"shrine†. The use of religious words and references shows that Romeo sees Juliet as a blessing. The imagery for the audience needs to be that if Romeo is a pilgrim then Juliet is a saint and his love is holy devotion. Juliet tells Romeo that they should not kiss but she does not really mean this in fact she says â€Å"The have my lips the sin that they have took. † You need to show the contradiction in what you are saying and your body language should support this. Move your face closer to Romeo’s face as if inviting him to kiss her again. The couple are engaged in this loving exchange when Juliet is called away to her mother. You need to show reluctance in having to leave Romeo to respond to your mother’s call. Then hurry away after a little hesitance showing your desire for Romeo. The nurse tells Romeo that Juliet is a Capulet and he realises he has fallen in love with someone from the enemy but this does not lessen his feelings towards Juliet. Juliet also begs her nurse to find out who Romeo is. â€Å"Go ask his name- if he be married My grave is like to be my wedding-bed† The nurse returns and informs her that he is Montague. Juliet is taken back that she has fallen in love with someone that she has been brought up to hate. You need to react to this in a stunned manner moving onto momentary despair and confusion. â€Å"My only love sprung from my only hate. † Juliet appears to be thinking out loud. She realises that she must love her enemy even though family considerations should induce her to hate Romeo. The audience needs to sense your predicament leaving the audience wondering what she will do. By the end of the scene the audience will understand that Juliet is a stronger character than she appears to be in Act 1 Scene III. She is willing to break with tradition to be with Romeo. Juliet’s behaviour is changing, she is showing signs of defiance and her tone is more assertive. As the stage director I am attempting to send a message that despite this tragedy, love triumphs over hate. I want the audience to have warmth for Juliet as she dies for love and sense the needless tragedy that has occurred. I hope the information in this letter will help to you prepare for the production. I’m looking forward to working with you in rehearsals. Feel free to contact me if I can be of any further assistance.

A Reaction Paper On A Country Doctor English Literature Essay

Franz Kafka ‘s A state physician is a narrative about a physician who is called upon in the center of the dark to go to to a earnestly sick immature adult male.Hampered by deficiency of conveyance agencies and utmost conditions conditions, the physician is at strivings to come up with solutions to his jobs. This essay paper will try to consistently analyze the challenges and defeats that the physician encounters as the narrative unfolds. This essay will besides reply the inquiries as to why the narrative may be referred to as a incubus every bit good as explore the major subjects brought out in this artistic narrative that is so a reproduction of Franz Kafka ‘s coevals and the current modern society. Challenges and Frustrations The physician is in a quandary He is challenged by the fact that he has no agencies of conveyance to take him to the place of the gravely sick immature adult male, 10 stat mis off. The physician ‘s Equus caballus had died due to the icy winter. â€Å" My ain Equus caballus had died the old dark as a consequence of overexertion in this icy winter. † The physician is frustrated at this point because no one inA A the small town was willing to help him. â€Å" My servant miss was at that really minute running around the small town to see if she could borrow a Equus caballus but it was hopeless-I knew that. † Out of defeat the physician hazards aching himself by kicking the pigpen ‘s door. â€Å" I kicked my pes against the chapped door of the pigpen which had non been used for old ages. † The terrible conditions conditions pose a challenge to the physician excessively. He has to digest the chilly blizzard to travel and go to to a patient. The physician says, â€Å" A terrible blizzard filled the infinite between him and me. † The physician does non conceal his quandary when he says, â€Å" I stood there useless, progressively covered by snow, going all the clip immobile. † After handling the ill immature adult male the physician attempts to do his manner place but the one time strong and fat Equus caballuss are old and tired, they move at a slow rate at which the physician feels he will ne'er make place. See, â€Å" We dragged easy through the snowy desert like old work forces. † The physician is obviously frustrated when he says, â€Å" I ‘ll ne'er come place at this rate. He becomes sad when he thinks of his place which was occupied by the Groom. â€Å" In my house the disgusting groom is bringing mayhem, Rosa is his victim. † The 3rd challenge that the physician brushs is the Groom. The physician does non cognize how to cover with this alien. First, when the groom viciously bites Rosa on her cheeks, the physician merely threatens the groom with words and quiet down at one time because he wanted to borrow a Equus caballus from the groom. At that minute, the physician is about the groom ‘s slave. The groom finally offers his Equus caballuss to the physician but decides to remain with Rosa alternatively of going with the doctor.A The physician is hence at hamlets. He does non cognize whether he should remain and protect Rosa from the barbarous groom or travel in front and go to to the earnestly sick Youngman. The physician chose the later. However, as the narrative unfolds the defeats of the physician refering this determination go evident. See, â€Å" I had to give Rosa every bit good, this beautiful miss, who lives in my house all twelvemonth long and whom I barely notice-this forfeit is excessively great. † The physician is challenged by poorness and excessively much work. He has dedicated his life to functioning the territory but is ill paid. See, â€Å" I am employed by the territory and my responsibility make my responsibility to the full, right to the point where it is about excessively much. Badly paid, but I am generous and ready to assist the hapless. † The physician has merely one Equus caballus, when the Equus caballus dies the physician lacks agencies of conveyance to enable him execute his responsibilities expeditiously. The physician is obviously overworked. He is called at midnight to go to to patients. It seems he seldom sleeps since his dark bell was ever rung by villagers. When executing his responsibilities the physician is under force per unit area from the villagers. They want him to immediately bring around their patients. The physician is frustrated by this when he says. â€Å" I am non a universe humanitarian. † Subjects The first subject that has been good brought out is the subject of agony. At the beginning of the narrative, the physician suffers psychologically because he has no agencies of conveyance to enable him make the place of a earnestly sick adult male. â€Å" I was in great trouble. An pressing journey was confronting me.A earnestly sick adult male was waiting for me in a small town 10 stat mis distant. † The physician ‘s Equus caballus had died and he was worried because no villager would impart him a Equus caballus. â€Å" Of class, who is now traveling to impart his Equus caballus for such a journey? † The utmost icy winter made the physician to endure. First his Equus caballus dies in the winter go forthing him without agencies of conveyance and secondly the physician has to digest the chilly conditions to go to toA A the patient. â€Å" I stood there useless, progressively covered by snow, going all the clip more immobile. Rosa suffers when the groom bites her on the cheeks. â€Å" On the miss ‘s cheeks are ruddy Markss from two rows of dentition. † Rosa further suffers when the physician leaves her to remain with the evil groom against her will. â€Å" No, screams Rosa and runs into the house with an accurate foreboding of the inevitableness of her destiny. † The ill immature adult male suffers excessively. The immature adult male suffers from a deathly lesion that is infested with worms. See, â€Å" On his right side, in the part of the hip, a lesion the size of the thenar of 1s manus had opened up. † The immature adult male holding lost hope of life Tells the physician, â€Å" Doctor allow me decease. † The 2nd subject found in this narrative is blasted. The physician blames his failure to go to T o a earnestly sick patient on his deficiency of a Equus caballus. See, â€Å" But the Equus caballus was missing- the Equus caballus. † The physician further blames the villagers for unnecessarily citing him to go to patients who harmonizing to the physician were merely shaming unwellness. He blames the villagers further for non helping him in clip of demand. See, â€Å" My servant miss was at that really minute running around the small town to see if she could borrow a Equus caballus but it was hopeless. † The state physician as a narrative constantly topographic points blame for his failure on others, on the deficiency of Equus caballuss, on the groom, on the villagers, on the immature adult male. His narrative attitude is one of ; if I have failed it is non my mistake, but instead the mistake of others ( Grey 2009 ) Exploitation is another subject found in this narrative. Exploitation is unjust intervention of person or usage of a state of affairs in a manner that is incorrect in order to acquire some benefit ( Wikipedia, 2009 ) the groom appears at a clip when the physician is need of conveyance agencies and takes advantage of the state of affairs to take Rosa against her will. â€Å" I see how in add-on she chases down the room seting all the visible radiations in order to do herselfA impossible to happen. † The subject of treachery is besides apparent in this shortA A narrative. The physician betrays his house aid when he leaves he in the custodies of the barbarous groom. â€Å" I had to give Rosa every bit good, this beautiful miss who lives in my house all twelvemonth long and whom I barely notice-this forfeit is excessively great. † He witnesses the unmarried man force himself upon the house maid but instead than remain to entree and demilitarize the alien, the physician allows the steeds to transport him off as the shriek of his maidservant reverberation through the winter dark. ( Hemphill 2009 ) This short narrative may be called a incubus. The physician concludes that the ill immature adult male is shaming unwellness after a brief scrutiny. The physician merely observed the pulse of the patient. In his concluding the patient was merely seeking attending that he was non ill. The physician in this narrative does non run the manner physicians in existent universe operate. Alex Hemphill observed that Franz Kafka ‘s – A state physician is written in a watercourse of consciousness and includes all the devising of a incubus ( 2009 ) When the physician kicked the door of the pigpen at that place emerged the groom and the two Equus caballuss cryptically. This is absolute phantasy and can non go on in a existent world.. â€Å" Two Equus caballuss, powerful animate beings with strong wings shoved their manner one behind the other. † A state physician can be read as fulfillment phantasy motivated by self excuse ( Grey 2009 ) Decision The physician in Franz Kafka ‘s -A state physician is a contemplation of some people in the society who sacrifice their lives to function everyone but their attempts are barely noticed by anyone. They are the unobserved heroes of national development who would instead decease than fail responsibility. Though frustrated by environment and a society that does non appreciate them, such people do non fear to meet the challenges that lie in front of them. Possibly the physician sums everything in his narrative by asseverating that, â€Å" To compose prescriptions is easy but to come to an understanding with people is difficult. †

Development or environmental injustice Essay

What does it really take to experience development? What are the defining criteria for development? Is development quantitatively measured or qualitatively evaluated? What are the key indicators of a developing or developed country? The answers depend on the person’s priority and preference. The expansion of metropolitan areas has been referred to as urban development by those who are after the material indicators of development- high rise buildings, wider highways, more cars and more parks. For those who are concerned with the long-term environmental and health effects of urbanization, they call it urban sprawl. For the purpose of having a common point of reference, let me use 1Dr. Howard Frumkin’s definition of urban sprawl: â€Å"the complex pattern of land use, transportation and social and economic development. † This complex pattern requires the extension of urban areas to rural areas, and thus converting the latter to urbanized locality. Urbanization implies vast forest and agricultural lands to be converted to different land uses. Sad to say, the list includes recreational facilities and parks which, for investment and environmental considerations are to be of least priority. Extensive roads construction which provides spaces for suburban dwellers to drive a car just to buy a pack of cigarette in the next block, is not suppose to be of immediate consideration. Besides this qualitative indicators of poor urban sprawl considerations, there are environmental threats of urban sprawl that are needed to be evaluated and be given high priority by the development advocates, as it concerns life of the present and future generations. 2â€Å"Automobile has been a prerequisite to urban sprawl. † (J. E. Anderson) The most adverse effect of heavy reliance to automobiles is obviously air pollution. In the United States, 3about 25% of all trips are shorter than one mile of these, 75% are by car. Another related 4study revealed that only 1% of trips in the US are on bicycle and 9% by foot. Do these figures present impressive urban development rates for the US? I am afraid not because the Netherlands has 30% accounting for transportation on bicycle. These facts rather provide proofs that vehicles are the leading source of air pollution. Despite modern environmental standards, urban air quality remains to be greatly affected by the emission of air pollutants from transport. In the 5US alone, 30% of nitrogen oxide and 30% of hydrocarbon emissions are brought about by mobile sources. In addition, 5carbon dioxide emission, which is the end product of burning fuel such as gas, accounts for 80% emissions. Carbon dioxide is the major greenhouse gas, with global warming potential. Needless to explain, development should no be measured quantitatively, that is by the number of cars that are going to and fro the streets of the cities. Rather, development should be measured qualitatively, that how much does it contribute to the quality of life the residents are to experience when programs relative to urban sprawl are push through. Housing development is a part of urban sprawl, which requires forest fragmentation. 6Chet Arnold of the Center for Land-use and Research at the University of Connecticut said forest fragmentation occurs when â€Å"large, continuous forests are divided into smaller blocks, either by roads, clearing for agriculture, urbanization, or other human development. † This means that housing development requires animal populations in the cleared forests to be thrown out of their natural habitats. Destruction of natural habitats accounts for great loss of biodiversity, which results to ecological imbalance. I agree that man deserve to have decent life and part of it is having a more comfortable living. But humans are not the only residents of the earth. We also have to take into consideration the floras and faunas as part of biodiversity. Let us remember that earth creatures are dependent on each other. Humans, being given the capacity to think and understand over the lower forms of life should see things beyond material and short-term comforts that development brings. Urban sprawl in this context alone is clearly an environmental injustice. Water resources are not exempted from the list of natural resources that are directly affected by urban sprawl. As requisite of urban sprawl deforestation brings forth water pollution. This is besides the effects of pollutants that directly come from factories, sewage treatment plants and local wastes, which are typical to urbanized cities. Rainwater that runs through the deforested lands are not effectively absorbed and thus flows downstream. This process results to lesser groundwater recharge, then water supply shortage follows. Added to the list of negative effects of urban sprawl to natural resources are noise pollution, the heat island effect, soil erosion and the declining fertility rates of soils. The main point of all these is that urban sprawl is the root of many environmental injustices. Air pollution, deforestation, water pollution, soil degradation and the destruction of biodiversity are results of a chain reaction from a single step to what others refer to as urban development. What humans failed to do and still refuse to consider is the future. Development projects, of which urban sprawl is a major player, are focused on comforts and pleasures of today and shortly after tomorrow. The next generation should be taken into serious consideration. There are things that still can be undone, but there are things that cannot. Natural resources that were destroyed can still be replaced, but it takes a century to bring them back to where they used to be. By itself, there’s nothing wrong with development. What makes it undesirable is its planner to consider the future. REFERENCES 1. Frumkin, Howard. Urban Sprawl and Public Health. Public Health Reports. May-June 2002 issue. Volume 117. page 201 2. Anderson, J. Edward. Personal Rapid Transit and Urban Development. Retrieved from http://faculty. washington. edu/jbs/itrans/sprawl. htm on December 19, 2006 3. Koplan, JP, Dietz. Caloric Imbalance and Public Health Policy. JAMA 1999. 282. pages 1579-81 4. Pucher, J. Bicycling Boom in Germany: A Revival Engineered by Public Policy. Transportation Q 1997:51. pages 31-46 5. US Environmental Agency. National Emission Inventory. Air Pollutant Emission Trends. Current Emission Trend Summaries. Retrieved from http://www. epa. gov/ttn/chief/trends/index. html on December 19, 2006 6. NASA. Urban Sprawl: The Big Picture. Retrieved from http://science. nasa. gov/headlines/y2002/11oct_sprawl. htm on December 19, 2006

Businesses Approach To the Use of Primary and Secondary Research Essay

Businesses Approach To the Use of Primary and Secondary Research - Essay Example This paper illustrates that the data gathered is put into use by a third party. In essence, it remains abroad and a diffuse data in a contained toolbox, since it does contain any virtual information useful in any market research context. The information is also very important since a large number of the organizations utilize it as they strive to improve their operations in the market. It is an all-purpose market tool, and the corporate board is always at the dispensation of seeking its reference for the sake of comparison of the market trends. It also remains the most accessible form of market research, which is also cheap in relation to the cost. The internal secondary research will entail any information that is gathered anywhere in the environmental angles of the firm. It includes categories such as sales report, the customer databases, ay past report of the primary market research. A sales report will break and dispense information in categories of region, times and the sales ext ent. Sometimes they can also give analytical reports of the distribution channels, discounts extents, and target customers categories. Databases will contain the description of the customer’s data. The primary market research will contain survey or focus group’s result that is done in the previous years. External research entails any information that is gathered by the commercial vendors, government agencies, and other diverse sources. Of utmost importance is a syndicated report, which tends to compile the data with the use of libraries, data calls, and other databases. Concisely, they aim at selling the information to as many firms as possible. The information has passed through the analyst's hands hence it is reliable.

Capacity to contract is a concept meant to protect those who are Essay

Capacity to contract is a concept meant to protect those who are disadvantaged in the society Explain - Essay Example Simply stated, a contract may be valid when made by parties recognized by law to be of legal personality be they natural or artificial persons. When the law forbids or limits a party from performing certain activities, any contractual relationships entered into by them to do so become either void or voidable on the basis of incapacity. In some cases, this incapacity is referred to as incompetence. In some cases however, certain classes of persons are only able to engage in contract only to limited extents as noted by Gaylord and LeRoy (2003). Some persons that are considered in these classes include minors, alien enemies, people who are mentally unsound or insane, bankrupts, drunkards, companies, receivers of companies, and partnerships among others according to the United Kingdom’s law. Such incompetence or incapacity in some cases may be regarded in terms of absence of good faith on the other party’s side. What this means is that all sober and sane adults can contract although their actions are controlled to protect other persons from being subject to exploitations. The intention of this measure is to protect those persons who may not be able to make decisions that are to their best interest according to Barnett (1986) and Barnett (2003). The requirement for capacity however can be challenged in exceptional cases such as when the contact with a person who is not of legal capacity regards necessities of life which include shelter, clothing and food. The argument in this case is that certain goods or services are required for human survival and even those who are incompetent need them. In other cases an incompetent party may enter into a contract with a competent party out of social need (Austen-Baker, 2002) as in the case where a teenager purchases from a business person a tuxedo for their graduation. In general,

Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words - 23

Case Study Example As a director of the company, my first action will be to have a formal talking with Fred about his actions and the consequences of his actions to the company. I will also emphasize of ethical values and respect for others which is the greatest level of integrity in any organization. As part of his working condition terms, one fundamental obligation to the company is to demonstrate high level of integrity and follow the channels of airing his views instead of causing intentional delays and errors in his work. I will lastly consider raising his salary in order to ensure that he is also motivated (Yin 34). In order for the bank to justify its responses on the allegations forwarded to the EEOC by Ruth, it has to provide evidence that there were not discrimination in the dismissal of Ruth Wittman on the basis of her color or any other wrongful basis. The first document that the bank should present to the EEOC is the absenteeism record of Ruth; this will also help in shading light on the allegations that she was constantly absent and tardy. Another document that the back should provide is the record of all other employees’ absenteeism as well as job allocation scheme. Another vital document that the bank should submit is the 54 separate counseling occasion of Ruth as well as other counseling occasions of her colleague in order to justify that its actions were legal. If I were the EEOC District Director, I would first analyze the presented documents about the absenteeism and tardiness of Ruth Wittman. I would then compare it with other employees of the bank and note the frequency of the absence and tardiness of other employees as well. I will also demand the bank to prove that it followed the legal procedure for dismissal of an employee. This will include the provision of a warning letter and being given the dismissal letter within the required period of time before administering the dismissal process. If the dismissal was done in an illegal way, I

Memorandum Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words - 1

Memorandum - Essay Example For instance, the 21st century has been hailed as the Asian century. China, followed by India, are powers that hold the position wherein they can influence international politics in a big way. In addition to this, the rise of international organizations, like the BRIC and the ASEAN, have great implications that challenge the role of the United States as the supreme nation. These organizations, often dominant players from the Developing World hold important implications for the United States, since they challenge the world order existent and the implications it holds for them. As a Policy Analyst, I would say, that a Multi-Polar world order is in the offing. Besides the rise of developing countries and middle powers, other factors, like the rise of non-state actors, besides international organizations, play a major role in deciding their implications for the United States. Terrorism, as a non-state actor is a major issue that continues to haunt the United States. The US policy in Afghanistan-Pakistan and the stand taken, are extremely important in this case. Besides this, religion and ethnicity have assumed a rather big meaning today, and this has considerable importance, since United States is largely a melting pot. In forums like the UN General Assembly and the UN Security Council, the United States’ dominant position is not welcome, among these actors. Nations like India and China and other South-Asian nations often resist such a position. In addition to this, the Af-Pak policy is often a bone of contention, besides the stand taken on Palestine. As a policy analyst, I would recommend that the United States should definitely look at directly countering

The view that powerful elites generate fear does not adequately Essay

The view that powerful elites generate fear does not adequately explain the complexities within the news reporting of AIDS in Britain. Discuss - Essay Example African countries are affected by real epidemic, and the epicenter of the world most dangerous disease is located in Sahara Desert region where a half of population of the world is living at the moment. This information does not seem shocking for anyone in the world anymore because AIDS was covered in media substantially and effectively since the time of its discovery. It is well-known that a frightening and repulsive image of AIDS was created with the help of accurate metaphors and definitions (Cullen, 2003). Nevertheless, the question if the image of AIDS was constructed adequately to the severity of the epidemic or media has spread certain panic among readers remains actual and urgent, and Britain represents a particular interest for this study because real epidemic has never reached the island. The UK as well as many other countries of the world faces the complexities within the news reporting of AIDS, and the fact that powerful elites generate fear does not adequately explain th em. In order to examine this question newsroom practices in Britain on reporting were studies closely. First of all it is necessary to outline the history of the disease, its symptoms and consequences to understand how media should cover AIDS/HIV to create normal feedback from its auditory. UNESCO states that media as well as medical institutions and common people have to aim to reduce the quantity of people contracting HIV and relieve moral and physical pressure of those who are fighting with the disease. This is an established ethical principle when dealing with HIV and AIDS (Foreman, 2003). The first reporting of AIDS by media goes back to 1982 when several alarming articles were published in different American medical journals telling about this unknown mysterious disease. Much concern was expressed about it already due to high mortality of young healthy individuals and it was defined as threating and dangerous for public. But nobody could even imagine the degree of panic the

Teens and Plastic Surgery Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Teens and Plastic Surgery - Research Paper Example If they have a scar on their face, a birthmark, a mole, or something like that which they do not want to have, they decide to get a plastic surgery. But the idea that lies behind is the only one, and that is to change the way they look like because they are unhappy and want to get appreciated by their friends. Thus, the main causes why teens go for plastic surgery are pessimistic self-evaluation and mental displeasure or frustration (Nichols and Good 153). The trend is also increasing since it was 306,000 teens getting it in 2000 and in 2005, the number was 333,000 (Masui). History The history of plastic surgery began during the World War II. Mass destruction caused by modern weapons caused huge deformities in people and thus the demand for treatments also increased. People wanted their deformed facial and body features to be reconstructed, and thus the idea of plastic surgery flourished extensively. â€Å"Shattered jaws, blown-off noses and lips and gaping skull wounds caused by mo dern weapons required innovative restorative procedures† (â€Å"Plastic Surgery NYC Surgeon Cosmetic Breast†). Hence, best plastic surgeons were hired to reshape the body parts of soldiers during WW II. This was the start. The decade of 1960s brought with it some of the most sophisticated and modern procedures and equipment which filled in the people the desire to get plastic surgery. Now, where elders go for it to reconstruct or reshape their features, youngsters are also interested in the cosmetic advantages of plastic surgery. Types of Plastic Surgery Popular in Teens Teens usually go for the reshaping of their noses, lips and ears. Rhinoplasty is the reconstruction of nose; otoplasty is the procedure in which stuck out ears are tucked in; and, hyperhydrosis is the process that reduces excessive sweating. All of these procedures are very popular among teens. Laser hair removal, chin augmentation, and acne scar treatment (dermabrasion) is also done. Breast uplifting, breast implants, breast enhancement, and breast reduction, are popular in female teens. Another famous concept is liposuction which is a body contouring procedure that washes away fat from the body so that obesity is countered. The number of teens getting liposuction rose from 60,000 in 1997 to 225,000 in 2003; the number of teens getting microdermabrasion was more than 21,000 in 2000; those getting nose jobs were more than 15,000; and more than 12,000 underwent otoplasty, as shown in an eight year research (Mann). Researchers also suggest that plastic surgery is not found to improve the overall quality of life of a teen. Effects of Plastic Surgery Teen cosmetic surgery has been found to have many side effects. Since, there are few valid reasons behind teens getting plastic surgery, thus there are less emotional considerations to it and the complaint is more likely to be consistent. The surgery may leave marks and the pain in the operated area lasts forever. Also, teens who get plas tic surgery get stereotyped and are looked down upon by their peers. Finances The cost of all plastic surgeries is substantially high (Alagna 8, para.4) and for teens, it is not very much affordable. Otoplasty costs $3200-$6000; in UK, the nose job costs $5000-$6000; breast lift costs $5000-$6000; chin implant costs $3000-$4500; and, liposuction (1 area) costs $2500-$4500. However,

Nuclear Power Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Nuclear Power - Research Paper Example The usage of various kinds of natural resources for various purposes which includes the power generation and transportation means, have contributed towards the global warming in a considerable amount. With global warming clouds looming over the modern day society there is a need for an environment friendly energy generation source, nuclear power plants can be considered as the appropriate alternative that can help the environment in a considerable amount. Alternatives are being thought of to minimize the damages to the environment. Nuclear power plants are thought to be safe in this regard and provide a better option as an alternative of energy source against various other sources of energy. Besides the environmental aspect, hydro powers demand a pre installed infrastructure in form of dams and canals and rivers in the line. Large amount of capital needs to be invested in case of a thousand plus mega watt power generator source. The construction costs are a debatable issue at times, and more often it takes considerable amount of time constructing a large scale dam which can meet the requirements of a large segment of population. The irrigation means have to be brought into action to establish a chain of flow of water from various rivers into the dam and reservoirs. Nuclear power plants are operational in many parts of the world and are producing electricity on large level and fulfilling the requirements that would otherwise be met by the sources which are fewer environments friendly. Another advantage of it is the readiness with which it can be prepared. Unlike dams, it does not need a massive infrastructure establishment. Nuclear sources of energy production do not pose any direct threat to the environment; however, they have their own considerations to be taken into account. Though they do not result in direct damages to eco system, the carbon dioxide concern is buried to large extent since it does not result in direct carbon dioxide emission, however they ar e little dangerous to handle and failure can result in catastrophes. Many incidents have come to forefront where the nuclear power plants have gone wild and resulted in total devastation. The damages so incurred are far intensive than any other source of energy generation. Japan came across the worst form of reaction from nuclear power plants in recent times, when tsunami struck its cities and resulted in leakage of Fukushima Nuclear power plant in March 2011 and it resulted in melting of layers and hence leakage of radioactive material on a massive scale. This resulted in large scale evacuation of the locals from the neighborhood of the nuclear site (Bryan, Sutton, & Centorino, 2011). Another similar incident took place in late 20th century in former U.S.S.R and present day Ukraine in the Chernobyl Nuclear power plant. It resulted in large amount of human life loss and nearly 30 people died because of this incident. Later on the improper design of the power plant was termed as the reason for its destruction. Besides its direct implications, large number of skin diseases and various other dysfunctional syndromes were reported in the area (Agranovski, 2011). Considerations need to be taken in to account when it comes to the wastes disposition. The wastes should be properly handled and should not be exposed to outside elements in the environment since the nuclear reactor material are mostly radio active in nature and can impact not just

Video Game Console Essay Example for Free

Video Game Console Essay Introduction This three year strategic marketing plan for the Alpha System has been created by its founders to secure additional funding for growth and to inform employees of the company’s direction. The first year of the marketing plan will be a tactical/guerilla approach to marketing with certain objectives and goals to meet. Even though Alpha Systems was launched 2 years ago on a Kickstarter campaign, the firm has seen tremendous growth over the last several months. We have had a lot of recognition from major video game publications and blogs. Our beta group has given us the right feedback to improve our video game system and worked out all of the major flaws in the system. The demand for our console is predicted to be high after we tried to get funding on â€Å"Shark Tank†. There was enough demand that we had to limit the number of beta tester request. Our pre-sale Kickstarter campaign saw high demands for people wanting day one systems. The market segment we service has been very receptive to our system launched with a high quality aluminum console, which is available in several popular colors to reflect our user’s personal style. Over the next three years, Alpha Systems can increase distribution, and enter a new era for our console and accessories; which will increase our bottom line sales and affect our return on our investment into our system and winning customers from the major gaming system platforms. Mission Statement â€Å"Our mission is to merge the valleys and gaps between the popular gaming platforms. It will allow users to play all popular games across multiple platforms on a single system; eliminating the need for multiple video game machines and accessories.† Product Description and Classification Alpha Systems video game console system will support all major video games system platforms, and allow you to use the online content provided by the game. There is a custom dashboard and the operating system reads all of the codecs that PlayStation â„ ¢, Xbox â„ ¢, Nintendoâ„ ¢, and retro games. The Alpha  Console will have the ability to support surround sound and high definition video. The system will also support DVD, and Blu-ray codecs. There will be two controllers in the box with an optional smart controller that customers can purchase. The system will have 16 GB of DDR3, and a two terabyte SSD hard drive. The operation system will be based upon open source Ubuntu with a dashboard look at feel. There will be support for web browsing and online video streaming. Applications like Spotify and Netflix will be pre-installed. Product Classification The Alpha System will fall under the classification of a Specialty Product Offering classification of the three-way product classification system. By providing a single console for you to play all of your favorite games on without the need for multiple systems to play the games one. Alpha System will become the premier video game system. Target Market Our target market is parents of teens who are looking to give their children the latest in technologies, and young adult’s age 19 to 25 who are avid game players, and have the disposable income to buy a higher end gaming system. Also we would target people who would want a single system, but yet would want to play games exclusive to PlayStation â„ ¢ and XBOX â„ ¢ and other gaming systems. Competitive Situation Analysis Analysis of Competition using Porter’s 5 Forces Model Competitive Rivalry: Our business model and advertising is directly pointed to compete in the same arena as Microsoft and Sony for the premiere video game systems. By doing this it will show the larger video game systems that will we not back down and that we are confident in our product. Threat from New Entrants: After Alpha System enters the market, our business model is structured about gaining a majority of ground in the market place, and taking user away from XBOXâ„ ¢ and PlayStationâ„ ¢ and allowing them to play all the proprietary games all on one system. While we always will work hard on our product to stay  current in an ever changing video game world. We have developed work around all of the major media digital rights management codecs. This will allow all major games to be played regardless of what system they are designed for. This will allow the optical drive to read the gaming media. Threat from Buyers: The number one threat from buyers in this market segment is loyalty to another brand. They may simply choose to buy an XBOXâ„ ¢ or PlayStationâ„ ¢ simply because they are used to buying those systems. There is a certain social stigma attached to owning an XBOXâ„ ¢ or PlayStationâ„ ¢ since they are for the most part the only video game systems on the market. Getting Vloggers, and bloggers to give our system positive review can go a long way towards neutralizing the negative stereotype a new system may or may not have. Threat from Suppliers: Many of the suppliers of the raw goods needed to develop the cross-platform gaming systems may have exclusive deals with Microsoft or Sony to build gaming systems. With that being said we may have to find new suppliers or research other avenues to get the gaming system made, and have to make a well informed and financially sound choice as to the direction we will go with manufacturing the system. Threat from Substitutes: Microsoft and Sony will always be a direct substitute for our console, but our job is to show the customer how our product is different and a better solution to their gaming system even if it is the smallest differences and, in our humblest opinion, superior. SWOT Analysis In this first paragraph, please introduce the SWOT analysis. For more information, see the recommended text, index topic â€Å"SWOT analysis.† This section is laid out to summarize the analysis in a table, and is then followed by more detailed explanations of each item. Please see specific instructions in the four sections below the table. STRENGTHS *indicates core competency Strengths We will be the first non-major bard video game system on the market that will play games from every video game system. Alpha Systems will not succeed without an innovative product. We have established that we can be as flexible as our users need us to be. If there is a game that we cannot play we will develop a way to play that game. By creating a market for the all-in-one gaming systems, we will be the gaming system that plays all of the major games from the major gaming machines. Weaknesses Low name recognition- At first we will have to hustle to find our share of the 55 billion dollar gaming industry. We will have to have a heavy ad campaign to get our name out there fast. Being we are going to be an unknown system at first we have to be creative in how we select our suppliers. Any mistake we make could and will be fatal to our company. Opportunities Some of our target demographic will not go away from their video game console at all. We can understand that, but we will use target ad campaigns that will attract the users in that demographic via YouTube and viral videos, and  social media buzz. These will get the people we want to reach at the rate we need to reach them at which is fast and immediate. We will also use a hands on approach at E3, CES, Insomnia Gaming shows and pretty much every comicon in the US and Europe and Japan. This will give our target demographic a hands-on time with our gaming system. We will have several systems set up on a local area network, and have a championship game battle. Job creation we will create jobs in America for the system and put people back to work. Threats The major video game manufactures like Microsoft, and Sony will likely take us to court and try to stop us, but we will prevail because of the ability to have free market competition, and they will be looked at as having a majority of control over the market. They may make changes to their digital right management coding to try to stop us from having their games played on our systems, but we will work with them and come up with a deal as long as they are willing to play fairly, and allow open source game codec development. Sony and Microsoft my push out the newer systems before they are due on the market; which means we will have to adapt to their new DRM. They may also try to purchase us in order to put an end to interfering in their 55 billion dollar market place. During the next three years, Alpha System seeks to achieve the following objectives using our marketing mix, including product, price, distribution, and marketing promotions strategies. If core financing is approved for this marketing plan, Alpha System will ramp up manufacturing, allowing Alpha System to achieve the following: Market Objectives Product Objective Expand into 5 major retailers buy 1st black Friday we are on the market. To hit our 2.5 million dollar sales goal. Price Objective To maintain our 15% ROI by the end of the fiscal year. Place Objective To add 10 more major retail chains throughout the world by the end of the second fiscal year. Promotion Objective To achieve 50 percent market awareness by the end of the 2nd fiscal year. Marketing Strategies We will have the most useful mix of marketing strategies, because focusing on getting our name out there will our primary focus. We will launch up to 30 viral video, and we will harness all of the video game YouTubers, bloggers to review and rate our game system by shipping them two free game systems. One to play and one to give away. The game systems will be in a special color because they are going to be limited pre-launch editions. These will create the buzz we need pre-launch. We will also use gaming convention in the USA and Europe and Asia to allow our system to be been prior to launch. This will allow people to get hands on experience with the system and allow them to see the capabilities of what is possible with our technology. Product Strategies Customizable Colors Sleek design No additional cost to online services Price Strategies Research the price points. Set a mid-range price point that will make the system desirable. Stage focus groups in regards to price. Place Strategies Develop relationships with major retailers, and find out supply chain requirements. Work out requirements with 3rd party logistic providers. Plan logically which distribution hubs product will be shipped from in relationship to retail locations. Promotion Strategies Viral Videos on YouTube, Social Media, Web launch day Game Trade Shows Give away systems pre-launch/ Day One Special Edition Explanation of Strategies This is the most effective strategies for our gaming device. We have thought out the development, and distribution, and promotion that will work for our product. Our product is simply the best system on the market and we will push it out to people, and allow them to realize what they have been missing out on over the past 30 years of video gaming, and show them the future of gaming and that they have a choice that is not Microsoft or Sony. Tactics and Action Plan Our Tactic and action plans are designed precisely from date of design to the 3rd year of product life. We feel that we will not have to micromanage our people, but yet make them accountable for their role in the greater good that is to place Alpha System on the market. Product Action Plan Tactic Due Date Responsible Party Develop System Blue print Month 1 Engineering Operating System and Codecs Month 1 and 2 Programming Source raw materials Months 1 to 4 Sourcing Price Action Plan Tactic Due Date Responsible Party Research Competition Months 5 to 9 Marketing Focus Groups Months 9 to 13 Marketing Pre-Launch Trade shows Months 3 to 24 Marketing Place Action Plan Tactic Due Date Responsible Party Develop Retail chains placement Year 2 Sales Choose Logistics partner Months 23 to 24 Operations Supply Units prior to commitments 22 to 36 Operations Promotion Action Plan Tactic Due Date Responsible Party Produce Videos Months 23 to 36 Marketing Celebrity endorsements 20 to 36 Promotions Give Aways 35 to 36 Promotions Monitoring Procedures Monitoring is the most important procedure we will have weekly conference calls with suppliers to make sure our raw materials and finished goods are underway, and will make the cargo ship in time to be shipped to our logistics partner. We can hold in person meetings to discuss development and pre-launch status. Prior to launch of the system we will hold a companywide conference to show people what their hard work contributed to. We will also seek to make a positive Return on our investment through the distribution chain, and seek to make sure we are complying with retailer’s requirements. Also we will ask retailers for reports to see how many units are moving off the shelves.

European Union Trade Law Essay Example for Free

European Union Trade Law Essay Introduction Counterfeiting, piracy and infringements of intellectual property rights are very frequent in the European Union[1]. These take place all over the world and pose a grave danger to national economies and governments. The success of such activities is due to the counterfeiters’ greed for money and also the increase in demand due to consumer ignorance, which makes them prefer these lower cost imitation products[2]. The European Internal Market is characterized by national disparities in the means of enforcing intellectual property rights and counterfeiting, piracy and infringements of intellectual property rights takes advantage of this. These disparities determine the place where counterfeiting and piracy activities within the Community are carried out. The implication of this is that counterfeited and pirated products are manufactured and sold more in those countries which are less effective than others in dealing with counterfeiting and piracy. Therefore this has direct consequences on trade between the Member States[3]. It also has a direct effect on the circumstances controlling competition in the Internal Market. The result of this is that it leads to diversion of trade, distorts competition and creates disturbances in the market. The variation between the systems of penalties, in different nations, creates difficulty in effectively tackling the problem of counterfeiting and piracy[4]. It also results in the problem of improper functioning of the Internal Market. Further, it leads to loss of confidence in economic circles in the Internal Market, resulting in a reduction in investment. Moreover, in addition to the economic and social results, counterfeiting and piracy also hinder consumer protection, particularly in respect of public health and safety[5]. Increasing use of the Internet has enabled pirated products to be distributed very quickly around the globe and last but not the least; this phenomenon seems to be increasingly associated with organised crime. Fighting this trend is therefore very important for the European Community especially when these illegal activities are carried out for commercial purposes or if they result in considerable damage to the right holder. The situation is especially acute in respect of the music industry[6]. Counterfeiting and piracy have resulted in continual and increasing harm being done to business in the form of lower investments and closure of small and medium enterprises; to society by way of job losses and decreasing consumer safety and threat to creativity and governments due to loss of tax revenue. In the case of the   Ã‚  Ã‚  cultural (music, films, videos CDs, DVDs) and software industries the situation has been made worse by the easy access to a global market via the internet[7]. Quite some evidence has been obtained that reveals that counterfeiting and piracy are becoming increasingly linked to organised crime and terrorist activities because of the high profits and the comparatively low risks of discovery and punishment[8]. Reason for action at the EU level At present, as far as legislation in respect of the enforcement of intellectual property rights is concerned, there are important differences in the Member States. These differences are being exploited by Pirates and counterfeiters by carrying out illicit activities in Member States where enforcement mechanisms are applied less effectively. It is hoped that the proposed Directive will reduce counterfeiting and piracy, by reducing differences in national legislations across the EU and by directing Member States to implement tougher sanctions and better remedies against infringements[9]. Intellectual Property Rights or IPR, infringement takes place in most types of rights and virtually any product that can be pirated or counterfeited[10]. It is usually assumed that piracy and counterfeiting take place mainly with regard to some luxury, sports and clothing brands, music and software CDs/DVDs. The reality is otherwise and virtually every IP is being violated at a significant level and that the diversity of fake products is vast, with large software producers as likely to be harmed as small producers[11]. Copyright – Piracy is widespread in all formats with particular focus on digital media, from CDs to VCDs, to DVDs. Further, illegal digital distribution of films, music, pictures, texts and software over the Internet is extensive[12]. Trademarks – Counterfeiting takes place in respect of almost all the products and there fake clothes, footwear, leather goods, watches, toys, cigarettes, pharmaceutical products, car parts, electronic devices, etc. In some countries former business partners continued to use trademarks or designs of the right holders even after the partnership had ended[13]. Technical designs – There have been infringements in respect of design over a vast and diverse range of products like, spectacle frames, wine glasses, sliding doors, textiles, etc[14]. Patents – Many reports were submitted regarding infringements on pharmaceutical products, electrical domestic appliances, industrial machinery, etc[15]. Geographical Indications – In some countries the registration by local producers of trademarks of geographical indications originating in Community Member States is permitted[16]. Data protection –   A number of instances where partial or total lack of protection in respect of information given to national authorities, while lodging patents or during the registration of pharmaceutical products   have come to light[17]. Certain countries like China, Korea, Russia, Turkey, Taiwan, etc, are undoubtedly large scale producers of pirated and counterfeit goods. A major part of their production is exported, however, if there is a large domestic market, part of the production is used for domestic consumption. In developed countries, Uruguay, Brazil, etc, a large number of fake goods is imported. Another category of countries exist, which serve as points of transit for fake goods distributed by international networks[18]. The USA is one such country and despite its being a country generally recognized as having strict and effective enforcement rules and practices, nevertheless, according to official statistics is one of the main countries of origin of pirated or counterfeit goods seized. The reason for this is held to be the vast quantity of counterfeit goods produced in different countries being transported via the US to other destinations. Lastly, in respect of internet based IPR violations, it is very difficult to determine the origin and destination of such traffic. The European Union is an important destination for such goods. In addition to the goods exported into the Community, a sizeable part of the injury caused to the EU right-holders is because of the loss of income and reputation, in the case of fake goods of lower quality, due to sales in any other market. EU countries are also countries of transit for counterfeit goods and pharmaceutical products. The problem is so acute that the EU and the USA have formed a joint strategy to counter it[19]. The efforts of the member state governments are in general ineffective due to lack of a synchronized and effective approach. If the right-holders have the will, the means and the influence to compel the competent authorities to take appropriate action then such measures are successful. The fight against counterfeiting and piracy is hindered not due to obstacles in the substantive law, but due to the unavailability of means the lack of willingness of the enforcement agents to apply the law strictly and efficiently[20]. These enforcement agencies are, frequently, unsuccessful due to manpower shortage, shortage of funds, lack of regulation of the base legislation and general problems caused by insufficient national and international co-ordination including a lack of transparency. To be more specific, this is encouraged by the absence of deterrent punishments for infringers. IPR violations[21] are therefore low risk high profit activities and usually, there is unwillingness to apply criminal sanctions. Further, administrative penalties are in general insufficient to dissuade pirates and counterfeiters and sanctions involving the confiscation of production machinery or the closing of production facilities are not applied systematically. This encourages and perpetuates criminal activities. Trials in these cases are slow, uncoordinated and costly. There are long delays and very few positive results and jurisprudence does not show uniformity. Moreover, the effort is made all the more difficult due to local protection for infringing industries and rampant corruption of the authorities in charge. There is also an absence of trained officials, like legislators, judges, prosecutors, customs officials, police, etc.   A major problem arises due to the public not being fully aware of this problem. Many members of the public do not consider piracy and counterfeiting to be wrong and at times, there is lack of awareness of the fact that using such products is an infringement of the law. In some countries the co-operation of right-holders is accepted in criminal investigations leading to encouraging results, like the seizure of goods and the destruction of criminal networks. For instance the optical disc regulation is a cost-effective way to deal with the piracy problem, because optical disc laws work against infringements of intellectual property rights. Further, these rules make the manufacture of pirated optical discs much more difficult for rogue elements without implementing unjustified regulatory burdens on legal plants. This type of measure has yielded noticeable results in countries like Hong-Kong and the Ukraine. It has been observed that in several instances right-holders have not resorted to the law of the countries where the violations occur, because of a lack of confidence in the local system and also due to lack of ways to defend their rights in a distant country, unawareness of the means available and sometimes due fear of reprisals where criminal organizations are the violators. Several reports have indicated that national producers, accused of infringements are shielded from effective prosecution. In some countries the authorities will unofficially claim that domestic â€Å"job providers† deserve more protection than foreign right-holders. As long as the majority of the public sees IPR violations as a mechanism to obtain basically the same goods at a much lower price, it will not be possible to diminish piracy and counterfeiting[22]. Although, strict action is taken in respect of counterfeit goods which affect consumer health and safety, the sale of imitation luxury brands, software, audio and video products are frequent in many countries and constitute a major attraction for tourists. There is limited public awareness of the bad effects of widespread IPR violations, resulting in loss of foreign investment, discouragement to creativity and research development, loss of international credibility of the countries and the nexus between counterfeiting and piracy with organised crime.[23] In chapter one, a discussion about the response of EU Trade Mark Law against counterfeiting and piracy has been taken up. The causes of piracy and counterfeiting are dealt with briefly. After this, proposed remedies for infringements are considered. Next, the effects of counterfeiting and piracy and the resultant loss to the right holders are described. The enforcement mechanisms for combating piracy and counterfeiting are then analyzed. Subsequently, the different departments and directorates of the EU and their functions and enforcement mechanism are described. Finally, the role of customs department in curtailing piracy and counterfeiting is discussed in brief. As such this chapter, which deals with enforcement mechanisms of the EU trade mark law, reveals that these are not effective enough to deal with this problem. In chapter two, the role of courts in combating piracy is discussed in detail with case laws. After this the working procedures of community trademark court and the complexity of their procedures are discussed. This is followed by a discussion of a number of landmark cases in the history of the struggle against counterfeiting and piracy. Lastly, the latest EU law in respect of these crimes has been discussed in detail. In this chapter, the role of the courts in countering piracy and counterfeiting, though commendable, the disparities in national laws reduce their effectiveness. In chapter three, the responses of parliament in combating the problem of counterfeiting and piracy in the EU have been discussed. In this regard the various acts of parliament that pertain to this problem in various fields have been discussed in detail. These include the various directives, regulations and acts. Moreover, the time after which the trademark will be revoked and the methods by which it will be invalidated have been discussed. Although, parliament has enacted several laws to control the problem of piracy and counterfeiting, the lack of stringency in their enforcement has not been able to control this problem to the level required. Chapter 1    The Response of EU Trade Marks Law against Counterfeiting and Piracy       Causes of Piracy and Counterfeiting Counterfeiting, piracy and infringements of intellectual property rights are constantly on the increase. Their effect is international and they pose a serious threat to national economies. In the European Internal Market, these phenomena take particular advantage of the national disparities that may exist in the means of enforcing intellectual property rights. In other words, counterfeited and pirated products are more likely to be manufactured and sold in those countries that are less effective than others in combating counterfeiting and piracy. Counterfeiting is now a multi-million pound business, run by organised criminals. It is theft, no more, no less. It moves resources from the honest, tax-paying economy to the dishonest, tax-evading economy. It puts the law-abiding employees of brand owning companies out of work. In the worst cases, such as unauthorised pharmaceutical products, aircraft parts or motor vehicle parts, the counterfeit version is sometimes a serious danger to public safety. The principal cause of piracy and counterfeiting is that dishonest traders can make considerable profits, by taking advantage of the creative efforts and investment of others and by selling imitations at a lower cost than those incurred by the producer of genuine products. Clearly, such trade exists due to consumer demand and perception that piracy and counterfeiting are mild violations. Intellectual property theft is not considered by the public to be as bad as fraud, theft or trespass. This is made worse by the failure of the public authorities and commercial organizations in bringing to the notice of the consumers the dangers of using unauthorised products, the harmful social welfare effects from this trade and the imposition of insufficiently restrictive penalties by the judicial authorities. Proposed Remedies    On 15 October 1998, the European Commission presented a Green Paper on the fight against counterfeiting and piracy in the Single Market. The purpose of this paper was to start a debate on this subject with the participation of all the interested parties. The result of this consultation exercise established that the functioning of the Internal Market was being adversely affected due to the differences in the national systems of intellectual property rights[24]. Subsequently, on the 30th of November, 2000 the Commission presented a follow-up Communication to the Green Paper in which it recommended an action plan to deal more effectively with counterfeiting and piracy. Some of the measures proposed were the presentation of a Directive that would bring about a harmonising of the national provisions on the means of enforcing intellectual property rights. The general opinion of the public is that counterfeiting is a harmless and as the price charged for genuine products are higher, there seems to be a general good will towards these counterfeiters. In accordance with section 111 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 of the United Kingdom, the owner of a copyright can give written notice to the Customs and Excise Department that infringed copies of published literary, dramatic or musical works that are expected to arrive in the UK should be prohibited[25]. From the 1st of July 1999, Regulation (EC) 241/1999 has amended a Council Regulation[26] by extending prohibition to goods infringing patents and supplementary protection certificates and to goods under all forms of customs supervision. This regulation contains a process by which members of Community Trade Marks can make a single application for customs intervention in any number of Member States, accordingly, the European Commission reported that between July 1995 and June 1997 customs authorities had taken action in about 4000 cases in comparison to only 2000 in the previous 7 years before the implementation of this Regulation[27]. Many contraband markets evolve through one or more of the following stages: Grey market, or parallel trading; smuggling; counterfeiting and piracy. The markets for contraband cigarettes, alcohol and pharmaceuticals pass through all three stages in their evolution, while the contraband markets for branded apparel and software might progress directly from grey market trading to counterfeiting. Sometimes when no such grey market goods are available organised crime groups may start producing and distributing counterfeit and pirated goods. In this manner a supply chain that is completely in the hands of organised crime groups is formed. Digitization and access to used manufacturing equipment has allowed the counterfeiting and piracy of cigarettes, apparel, computer software and music CDs. Impact of Counterfeiting and Piracy This Green Paper has assessed that 5% and 7% of world trade is due to counterfeited and pirated goods and the fact remains that this problem is more in certain sectors than in others. The Commission on assessment of levels of counterfeiting and piracy with regard to turnovers of some of the sectors concluded that, it is considerable. It opined that the level of counterfeiting and piracy was 35% in the software industry, 25% in the audio industry and 12% in the toy industry. The music, film and software industry, which are the main copyright industries are severely affected by counterfeiting and piracy. This problem occurs in the branded goods sector or in the industries like clothing, footwear, fragrances and cosmetics, luxury goods, motor car parts, aircraft parts, pharmaceuticals, food and drink and industrial chemicals. In France and Italy counterfeiting is more in respect of luxury goods, whereas in Germany the problem is compounded by the manipulated certification of counterfeited goods[28]. The resulting effects of counterfeiting and piracy are, diminished sales, disadvantages to the legitimate enterprises, due to free utilization of their research and development by their competitors, liability due to defective imitation products, free availability of imitations harmed the prestige and goodwill of a brand, initiation of legal proceedings against infringers and continuous supervision of the markets is expensive[29]. Further, the losses caused to the industry will be reflected in the public revenue, thereby raising the unemployment level in that industry[30]. According to the statistics of International Federation of Phonographic Industry, sales of illegal CDs accounted for 14% of the relevant market in the world. In May 2003, the UK music industry pointed out that the sales of pirated CDs exceeded the sales of genuine products. With regard to the responses to the commission’s green paper on combating the counterfeiting the piracy in the international market it was revealed that within the European Union the counterfeited and pirated goods amounted to 5 to 10 % of vehicle spare parts sales, 10% of sales of CDs, 16% of video and DVD film sales and 22% of shoes and clothing sales[31]. The commission referred to a survey conducted by KPMG in France, in 1998, in a proposal for counterfeiting directive. It was reported by Sofres and the Union des Fabricants that the average losses to the businesses, on which survey was conducted, amounted to 6.4% of the total turnover. According, to a study of 2000 by the centre for economic and business research in relation to global anti counterfeiting group, which calculated the average annual reduction in profits, was â‚ ¬ 1,266 million in the clothing and footwear sector, â‚ ¬ 555 million in the perfumes and cosmetics sector, â‚ ¬ 27 million in the toys and sports articles sector and â‚ ¬ 292 million in the pharmaceutical sector[32]. The losses caused by counterfeiting and piracy with regard to tax and excise fields were considerable. The commission’s proposal for a directive on the enforcement of intellectual property rights, accompanied by a paper of estimation revealing that in the phonographic sector VAT losses amounted to â‚ ¬ 100 million that were incurred by the EU Governments as a result of counterfeiting and piracy[33].    Enforcement The Directive 2004/48/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 29 April 2004 on the enforcement of intellectual property rights, states that till now the main concentration of the EC in the field of intellectual property was on harmonization of substantive law, and also on the formation of a unitary right at the community level. National property rights such as trademarks, designs, patents for bio technological inventions, copyright aspects and its related rights have been harmonized. At the Community level, the Commission has taken steps to formulate unitary rights, which become valid instantly throughout the EC and examples of these are Community trademarks and designs. In respect of Community patents’ formation discussions are going on at the level of the Community ministers. In spite of the fact that the harmonization of substantive law on intellectual property rights has promoted the free movement of goods between member states, the methods of enforcing them has not yet been harmonized. Hence, the present directive is required. Counterfeiting is in different forms. For example, in the absence of any permission from the English Football Club, football shirts are manufactured in the UK. This is being done by a company which is in no way connected with the Football Club. The brake pad manufacturers produced 150,000 brake pads to a required specification by the authorized dealer, though his order was for only 100,000 units. All of these brake pads marked with the company’s logo were supplied to unauthorized distributors. The European Commission represents and upholds the interests of the European Union or EU. It is a politically independent institution, which is the motivating power within the EUs institutional system. Its main roles are proposing legislation to the Parliament and the Council; managing and implementing EU policies and the budget; enforcing European law together with the European Court of Justice and representing the European Union internationally. In 1994, the EU implemented the Customs Regulation[34], which controls the imports of fake goods. In 1998, the Commission issued the Green Paper on Combating Counterfeiting and Piracy in the Single Market[35]. Based on the responses to this Green Paper, the Commission formulated an Action Plan, on 30 November 2000. The Action Plan consists of harmonization of legislation among all EU members in order to protect intellectual property rights; better law enforcement training programs; education programs to increase knowledge of the harm caused by buying imitation and pirated products and the beginning of a study for defining a method of collecting, analysing and comparing data on counterfeiting and piracy. In April 2004, this Action Plan was translated into a Directive[36]   for balancing the implementation of intellectual property rights in the Community by a Regulation[37] that improved customs action against counterfeit and pirated goods. It also extended Europol’s powers to include piracy and counterfeiting. In November 2004, the European Commission implemented a Strategy for the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights in Third Countries[38]   outside the Community. Departments of the European Commission The organization of the European Commission is into departments, known as Directorates-General or DGs and services, such as legal services. Each DG accountable for a specific area of policy is controlled by a Director-General who is accountable to one of the commissioners. These DGs work out and plan the Commissions legislative proposals and technical co-operation activities. Some of the Directorates General of the European Commission deal with the enforcement of intellectual property rights. Some examples of these are DG Trade, DG Taxation and Customs Union and DG Internal Market. These are discussed in the sequel. Directorate General for Trade The DG Trade has to develop and observe intellectual property policies in agreement with the trade policies of the EU. One of the main objectives of the EU is to implement better recognition and enforcement of intellectual property rights. Its policy with respect to intellectual property consists of implementing IP protection all over the world; promoting sufficient enforcement of IPRs universally and taking part in the war against violations; making certain that IPRs support public health objectives, cooperating with developing and under developed countries where implementation of intellectual property laws is difficult. The Enforcement Strategy focuses on the implementation of existing IPR laws and intends to illustrate, prioritise and organize the instruments available to the European Commission for achieving its goal. It identifies priority countries and the implementation of specific measures in technical assistance, dispute settlement and other sanction mechanisms, collaborating with like minded private entities, international organizations and countries, etc. It provides information for dealing with piracy, counterfeiting and other IPR violations. The objectives of the Enforcement Strategy are: Identification of priority countries. The focus of the EU action will be on the most problematic countries with regard to IPR violations. Such countries will be identified by a regular survey of all stakeholders. Political dialogue, incentives and technical co-operation. The EU will make all efforts to ensure that technical assistance given to third countries focuses on IPR enforcement. IPR mechanisms in multilateral, bi-regional and bilateral agreements. The EU will address enforcement concerns more systematically, within the framework of these agreements and consult trading partners in order to strengthen IPR enforcement clauses in bilateral agreements. Dispute settlement – sanctions. The EU will recall the possibility that right-holders have to utilize the EU’s Trade Barriers Regulation[39] or of bilateral agreements, where there is a violation of TRIPs. Increasing awareness. The public is made increasingly aware of the disadvantages and harm caused by counterfeiting by means of the EU. Creation of public-private partnerships. The EU supports and participates in local IP networks using mechanisms installed by Commission services like the IPR Help Desk and Innovation Relay Centers to exchange information with right-holders and associations. Moreover, it improves co-operation with companies and associations that actively fight piracy and counterfeiting.    Directorate General, Taxation and Customs Union An essential component for the creation of an integrated single European market and a common commercial policy is the Customs Union. Its purpose is to maintain and defend the Customs Union and ensure uniform application of the classification and origin rules. The Directorate General participates in international commercial negotiations which concern the application of the rules of origin and the preferential trading systems. Custom administrators have to not only collect duties but also have to protect consumers and legitimate traders. On the 22nd of July 2003, the Council of Ministers implemented a new regulation in respect of customs and counterfeiting. This Regulation which replaces the previous one[40] includes additional intellectual property rights like plant variety rights, geographical indications. Moreover, period of validity and request forms have been standardised. It has done away with fees and guarantees in order to help small and medium sized companies or SMEs to make free of cost use of the system. It extends the scope of the ex officio procedure, which permits customs authorities to react even if there is no previous application for action. The extension of the use of this possibility is of especial benefit to SMEs. Further, there is an increase in the quality and quantity of information given by customs to intellectual property right holders. This permits samples to be given to the owners of the intellectual property rights.   It permits checking travellers to ensure that the use of couriers does not hide a large flow of goods. Directorate General, Internal Market         Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The internal market is an essential part of the European Union. It has emerged as a result of the Treaty of Rome. This treaty created a common market in which there was a free movement of goods, persons, services and capital. Unification of the markets of Member States results in economic and political integration. The Treaty establishing the European Community or the EC Treaty brings about a system that ensures undistorted competition in the internal market and approximation of the laws of Member States for the functioning of the common market. This DG mainly concentrates on the knowledge based features of the Single Market and to some extent on the traditional regulatory instruments, which in order to avoid trade barriers harmonize the laws of the Member States. Its goal is to create unitary systems for protecting rights with Community-wide effect. It also focuses on ensuring the proper functioning of the Single Market in the fight against Counterfeiting. In addition, this DG also takes care of debates on the principle of Community exhaustion of trade mark rights and its economic effects on innovation, employment, prices and discussions on Enlargement. In order to get rid of trade barriers and to enable the framework responsive to new forms of exploitation, a considerable amount of intellectual property harmonization has taken place in the EU. The Internal Market DG has to modernise and adapt this acquis to advances in technology or the markets concerned for example, directive on copyright and related rights in the Information Society. Further, it has to improve international negotiations in order to strengthen the IPR internationally. A major contribution in this field by the Internal Market DG has been the Directive, adopted in April 2004, on the enforcement of intellectual and industrial property rights.[41] It makes it mandatory for all 25 EU Member States to apply successful, inhibitive and impartial remedies and penalties against those engaged in counterfeiting and piracy and thereby bring about a level playing field for right holders in the EU. This new Directive brings about uniformity, to the extent possible, in national legislation throughout the EU. This uniformity is respect of civil sanctions and remedies and it is in accordance with best practices in one or several member states. It consists of procedures in respect of evidence and its protection, and interim actions like injunctions and seizure. Right holders have several remedies like destruction, recall or permanent removal of illegal goods, financial reparation, injunctions and damages. It also implements a right to information, which permits judges to compel certain persons to disclose particulars of people involved in counterfeiting and piracy. Under this Directive, member states have to appoint national correspondents to cooperate and exchange information with each other and the Commission. In addition to benefits to right holders, the Directive contains suitable safeguards against abuse, guarantees the rights of the defence and contains references to protect personal data and confidential information. Directorate General, Enterprise DG Enterprise has founded the IPR-Helpdesk[42] whose main aim is to help prospective and current contractors who are participating in European Community funded research and technological development projects concerned with IPR issues. This helpdesk gives advice on Community diffusion and protection rules and issues relating to IPR in international research projects. Another international purpose of the action is to increase knowledge of the European research community on IPR issues, with particular reference to their European dimension. It also conducts several training courses and information seminars on intellectual property matters.    Directorate General Justice, Freedom and Security      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The DG Justice, Freedom and Security have common regulatory responsibilities as IPR enforcement is connected with law enforcement both within and outside the Community. This DG is at present working on a legislative project on approximation of national legislation and sanctions on counterfeiting and piracy. Specific field operations are taken care of by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF).    Customs Regulation Moreover, the European Union has introduced a Customs Regulation that empowers Customs officials to seize suspected counterfeit or pirated goods. Under this Regulation, EU Customs Authorities can detain suspected goods, for a short period, before the end of which, the rights owner have to initiate legal action against the alleged counterfeiter or pirate. Proper implementation would make this Regulation a very powerful weapon for rights holder with a good, anti-counterfeiting, intelligence network. This move to enact the Directive on enforcement of intellectual property is subsequent to the UK’s recent effort to tackle the problem of piracy by enacting the Copyright, Etc. and Trade Marks (Offences and Enforcement) Act 2002. The implication of this law is that those who deal in pirated goods and specifically, those who produce such goods and those who distribute them, will get stiffer fines and if the crime is serious enough they may be imprisoned. The requirement of this Directive will be that each of the Member States will have to apply the same procedure in infringement proceedings and this would include damages awarded, injunctions, provisional measures and sentencing[43]. Intelligence, appropriate criminal sanctions and Courts that enforce these sanctions, are essential factors in combating counterfeiting. In the absence of precise information on the source, time of supply and place of transfer it is very difficult to stop their entry onto the market. In order to limit piracy within the EU the EC has revealed plans to put into practice an anti-piracy law that aims at harmonizing anti-piracy law throughout the Member states. This chapter has dealt with the enforcement of trade mark laws, in order to prevent piracy and counterfeiting. Evidently, this problem cannot be curbed because of the disparities in the domestic laws of the member states. As such the pirated and counterfeited goods, though not produced in the EU, freely flow into it with great damage being done to the right holders. In the next chapter the role of the courts in dealing with this problem will be discussed. Chapter 2       Responses of the Courts to Counterfeiting and Piracy    In the absence of effective methods for enforcing intellectual property rights, innovation and creativity will be discouraged and investment will be reduced. It is therefore necessary to ensure that the substantive law on intellectual property, which is a part of the acquis communautaire, is applied effectively in the Community. The acquis communautaire includes all the treaties, regulations and directives passed by the European institutions as well as judgments laid down by the Court of Justice, which member countries have to adopt, implement and enforce in order to be admitted to the EU[44]. The means of enforcing intellectual property rights are of vital importance for the success of the Internal Market. The discrepancies between the systems of the Member States in respect of the means of enforcing intellectual property rights are harmful to the proper functioning of the Internal Market. These discrepancies also make it impossible to ensure that intellectual property rights have the same level of protection throughout the Community[45]. This situation hinders free movement and does not create an environment that is favorable to healthy competition. Formerly, the commission’s ability for providing criminal sanctions under the first pillar was suspect. Hence, the EU commission submitted a draft directive, which entails the harmonization of law to facilitate the single market. The directive which is the foundation instrument would have been adopted by the council and the parliament under the co decision method. Moreover, the commission has submitted a draft framework decision, which contains criminal sanctions. A framework decision is a third pillar instrument that is adopted by the council exclusively. Hence, the parliament has not taken any part in this process. The commission was disinterested in splitting up the draft legislation into two legal instruments, a directive and a framework decision; hence, it initiated proceedings against this mechanism before ECJ. On the 13th September 2005, the ECJ, in its judgment in commission v council[46] held that provisions of criminal law that promote the effective implementation of community law come under the first pillar. After this decision, the European Parliament’s involvement in the legislative process has been on the increase. Due to this milestone decision, the European Commission has presented a second draft directive on 28th April 2006. This legislation consists only of one legal instrument, a directive. The proposal of the commission has to be adopted by the European Parliament and the council under the co decision procedure[47]. The latest changes come from the case law of the European Court of Justice rather than the European legislator. Regulation 1383/2003 applies at the EU’s external borders to export, import, transshipment and external transit. This is according to Article 1 (1) of Regulation 1383/2003. Most of the border measure cases concern to transit and transshipment cases and the provision of Article 1 (1) is a â€Å"TRIPS plus† provision. This is because it transcends Article 51 of the TRIPS Agreement, which is restricted to imports. However, recent developments in the case law of the ECJ may bring about a change this approach. In Class International[48], the ECJ held that the external transit of grey market goods is not the use of a trade mark. Counterfeited and pirated goods under Regulation 1383/2003 are defined much more narrowly than the scope of protection awarded to owners of trade mark, copy and design rights. In Article 2 (1) (a) of Regulation 1383/2003 counterfeited goods are defined as â€Å"goods [] bearing without authorisation a trade mark identical to the trademark validly registered in respect of the same type of goods, or which cannot be distinguished in its essential aspects from such a trademark.† therefore, customs in order to take border measures have to be in the presence of a semi identical sign applied to identical goods and this is at variance with the Community law concept of risk of confusion normally resorted to in trade mark law. The definition of pirated goods, as per the provisions of Article (2) (1) (b) of Regulation 1383/2003, is the following, â€Å"goods which are or contain copies made without the consent of the holder of a copyright or related right or design right.† Further, the border measure Regulation states that the infringing goods have to be copies, whereas Community law employs the concepts of reproduction and designs. The danger with the definition in Regulation 1383/2003 is that goods blocked by customs for infringing an IPR may not be classified under this very restrictive definition of counterfeited and pirated goods. This could result in the courts being forced to hold that these goods were wrongly confiscated. This is very important because in practice the customs authorities do not follow the restrictive definitions of the border measure Regulation. The definition of goods infringing a trade mark, copyright or design right should be analogous to the definition of other infringing goods, where the Regulation takes recourse to the Community or national law. If there is a challenge to a trade mark registration for non-use, then the proprietor has to demonstrate, under both the UK law and the Community Trade Mark Regulation, authentic use in the applicable period or produce valid reasons for non use. In the trade mark LABORATOIRE DE LA MER the latest Court of Appeal decision established clear guidelines in respect of registered proprietors and parties considering applications for revocation[49]. In this case an application was made by La Mer Technology, Inc, which had registered a number of UK trade marks as â€Å"DE LA MER†; to revoke Goemar’s registration for the trade mark LABORATOIRE DE LA MER in the UK that was in respect of perfumes and cosmetics containing marine products in class 3. In the preliminary hearing the revocation application was dismissed as its use by the five sales was real and amounted to genuine use of the registered mark in the relevant non-use period. La Mer’s appeal made the High Court seek interpretation from the ECJ under Article 234 of the EEC Treaty. In January 2004 the ECJ gave its decision, wherein it held that the answers to the questions raised could be inferred from its earlier judgement[50] in the case of MINIMAX. In other words a registered proprietor of a trade mark defending an application for revocation on the grounds of non-use has to furnish evidence of genuine use in an unequivocal form and easily understood form to the tribunal considering the case, and proof that it is not for merely safe guarding the registration. A slogan, while being registered, should be accorded the same measure of scrutiny as any other word mark. In Das Prinzip Der Bequemlichkeit or The Principle of Comfort[51], this principle was upheld by the ECJ. Nevertheless, applications for slogan marks at the OHIM[52] may be objected to for being descriptive of the goods or services or for being devoid of distinctive character. The Court of First Instance held that the lack of evidence of promotional use of the mark did not signify that the slogan indicated the commercial origin of those goods or services. It also held that it was essential to consider the slogan in connection with the goods and services, and whether it was capable of being used in a descriptive or promotional context. Though the applicant showed that this mark had been registered in non-EU countries, the CFI refused to change its decision and held that the Community trade mark regime is an autonomous system and all assessments must be exclusively on the basis of the CTM Regulation, as interpreted by the Community judicature and not on precedent or on the basis of what had happened in other countries. The Board of Appeal has refused to take account of precedent slogan marks and the mark FUELING BRAND POWER[53], applied for in connection with a range of services in Classes 35, 41 and 42 was refused. The OHIM were able to show examples of third party use only of the words â€Å"FUELING† and â€Å"BRAND POWER†, separately. From the preceding it becomes clear that slogan marks are likely to be considered to be unregistrable if they are not imaginative or creative. On the basis of public opinion the OHIM considers such slogans as not having a distinctive character and this opinion is highly subjective. For this reason, registrable slogans should have a highly individualistic nature and this should be in addition to what would in general be necessary for a word mark to be registered. This is in direct contrast to the ECJ’s statements in relation to â€Å"The Principle of Comfort†. Notwithstanding this, if there is no evidence that the mark has obtained a distinctive character then such slogans may not be accorded registration by the OHIM[54]. In Signal Communications Ltd v Office for Harmonisation in the Internal Market (Trade Marks, Patents and Designs (OHIM)[55], The applicant wanted the Court of First Instance to annul the contested decision and pass such orders as would amend the Community trade mark application No 837096 to show TELEEYE instead of TELEYE. Under Article 63(6) of Regulation 40/94, the office has to take the necessary measures to comply with judgments of the ECJ. Hence, the Court of First Instance cannot issue directions to the Office. The applicants argument was based on Article 29(1) of Regulation No 40/94, which states that application for the Community trade mark and the trade mark relied on for the right of priority must be the same. In case it was unclear to the examiner that the applicant was applying for the Community trade mark with the same spelling as that used in the United States trade mark application should have been obvious to the examiner then changing the discrepancy between these two trade marks does not amount to a significant modification. In practice the importance of intellectual property rights depends on whether the holder can take effective measures to prevent others from infringing them. The right holder can not only take the infringer to court but he can also warn the infringer to desist from the acts in question. Sometimes, the main objective may be to arrive at an agreement with the infringer, in which case the right-holder will simply inform the infringer of the position with regard to IP rights and offer to discuss terms and conditions. Hence, judicial enforcement is a major test of effectiveness for the rights given by the intellectual property system. A vital necessity is that successful protection against infringement should be obtainable at reasonable cost to the right holder. However, if such effective judicial procedures are already in place then these procedures by themselves already ensure that IP rights are not violated. The right to prevent others from doing certain specific acts is the basis for the legal protection of intellectual property. A right-holder can obtain an injunction to prevent an infringer from manufacturing or distributing the infringing product, from using it or performing certain other acts. Such emphasis on the right to disallow differentiates intellectual property protection from the protection offered in other civil law matters concerning the breach of an owners rights. In civil courts the usual sanction is the award of compensation to the plaintiff for infringements of his rights which have already transpired, usually in relation to personal injury or property damage. The European domicile system was unable to generate a large body of European case law, because first, judgments revoking or cancelling a registered industrial property right had to be taken by the courts of the country for which the right had been granted. As the defendants in patent infringement proceedings generally file a counterclaim for invalidity, the prospects of internationalizing the domicile principle are limited. Divergence in the case law of the EU member states is due to the cross-border injunction. Second, hindrance to liberalizing the domicile principle takes place due to cross-border competence being limited to the courts of the country where the defendant is lives or mainly conducts his business. Such competence does not extend to the country where the infringing act occurred, which, is of particular importance to the plaintiff[56]. Complexity An infringement action brought before a Community trademark court makes it extremely easy to enforce registered Community trademarks across the whole of the European Union. In case the court decides that there has been infringement, this judgment will be imposed in all EU member states in which infringement took place. Further, the damages award will be based on all such infringing acts. Finally, an injunction against any further infringement may be obtained for the whole European Union. In November 2004 the Alicante Juzgado de lo Mercantil, acting as Community Trademark Court of First Instance, issued the pan – EU injunction in a trademarks infringement case, in respect of the selling of fake VIAGRA and PFIZER on the internet. Since the respondent was absent at the time of the hearing, the court had issued an ex parte injunction and made an order consisting of broad measures of protection. The court ordered the defendant to cease all use of terms like VIAGRA and PFIZER, in respect of the selling of any of the products in the EU, or on the internet and also ordered the defendant to desist from using the term VIAGRA as a domain name. In IMS Health Inc v Commission of the EU Communities[57], it was held that the aim of intellectual property protection is the right to exclude. On some occasions the legal capacity to exclude is referred to as monopoly. From this situation much controversy spins around the interaction of Intellectual Property Rights and Competition Law. Competition authorities have made efforts to balance the protection of intellectual property rights and market competition. Europe has taken these issues into consideration in a recent set of decisions implicating a supplier of pharmaceuticals sales data and its copyright protected data matrix. The balance between competition regulations and IP rights remains a topic for debate in most of the nations including European countries. If an IP right blocks entry into a genuinely needed facility for competing, there may be lawful public argument in order to compromise the IP right for promoting competition. However, such compromise should not be a matter of mere public convenience or a bare recommendation to the competitors, where competition is not threatened. Even IP rights serve a valuable public policy objective to encourage and reward creativity and to safeguard public interest. Policy makers should make sure that interference in the matter of protecting competition fulfils that objective instead of the less productive goal of simply making life easier for competitors.    In Anheuser-Busch Inc v Budejovicky Budvar Narodni Podnik[58], Anheuser-Busch Inc, instituted proceedings in the Finnish courts to prevent the defendant from using certain trade marks, which were claimed to have been infringed. In an appeal to the Supreme Court, the matter was stayed for making a reference to the ECJ on issues concerning the interpretation of TRIPS agreement. The ECJ held that in case of a disagreement between a trademark and sign that was suspected to have infringed the trademark TRIPS agreement will be applied, where the disagreement arose before the date of application of TRIPS but continued beyond that date. The relevant laws of Finnish trade marks had to be interpreted as far as possible in the wording and purpose of the provisions of Directive 89/04 on trade marks and TRIPS. A trade name could constitute a sign within the meaning of article 16(1) of TRIPS[59]. The exceptions to article 17 of TRIPS were targeted to make a third party able to use a sign which is similar to a trade mark that indicates its trade name, provided that such use was according to the sincere practices in industrial and commercial matters. A trade name which was unregistered but established by its use in the member state in which the trade mark was registered could be considered as an existing prior right as per the meaning of the third sentence of Article 16(1) of TRIPS[60]. The Silhouette Case This legal ambiguity has resulted in disagreements and in the case of Austrian sunglasses Silhouette, the ECJ ruled that community wide exhaustion is the appropriate interpretation in accordance with the 1989 Directive[61]. This judgement indicates that Article 7(1) of the Directive barred Member States from implementing an exhaustion regime that was wider than community exhaustion. In the Silhouette case the Austrian discount chain, Hartlauer, bought a consignment of Silhouette sunglasses from a Bulgarian company, which had purchased the goods from Silhouette International in Austria. Silhouette claimed that the sale of the sunglasses was subject to the stipulation that these sunglasses should not be re-imported into Austria. Hartlauer were taken to court, in Austria, on the charge that the trademark rights had not been exhausted. The ECJ held that the 1989 Trademark Directive was to be considered as a complete harmonization of the Member States’ rules for trademarks. In accordance to this ruling all Member States have to apply the principle of regional exhaustion. Nevertheless, such states that are in the EEA but outside the EU need not do so. Thus the ECJ has ruled that exhaustion occurs only when the products are being sold in the EEA and this establishes that the principle of international exhaustion is not applicable within the EEA if the goods had been first placed on non EEA markets. Hence, the rights owner was able to enforce its rights in the Silhouette trademark against the defendant, Hartlauer, even though these products were genuine and had been placed on the Bulgarian market with the consent of the trademark owner. The issue of consent was adjudged in the Sebago case, where it was held that consent under Article 7(1) of the Directive had to necessarily relate to each item of the product in respect of which exhaustion is pleaded. The Swedish Competition Authority, in a report, referred to the ruling of the EFTA Court in the Maglite case[62] which preceded the Silhouette ruling by six months. In this case a Norwegian company was importing Maglite lanterns from the US. The Norwegian general agent sued the importer for breach of Norwegian trademark law as well as the EU Trademark Directive. The EFTA Court held that the EEA agreement did not entail any common trade policy in relation to a third country and that a regional exhaustion requirement would severely restrict freedom of trade in respect of third countries. 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