Feasibility Study

A growing number of business are setting-up base in the Dubai, Abu Dhabi and other cities in the United Arab Emirates. At the same time, a majority of existing business, are always looking to expand. One must always keep in mind, that in a competitive market, the chance of failure is greater. In order to safeguard your future investment, you are advised to perform a “Feasibility Study”.

The purpose is to identify any critical issues that would prevent your business from being successful in the marketplace. In other words, a feasibility study determines whether the business idea makes sense.

You want to make sure that there are no major roadblocks facing your business idea before you make that investment. Identifying such roadblocks is the purpose of a feasibility study.

A feasibility study looks at three major areas:

• Market Issues
• Organizational / Technical Issues
• Financial Issues

SMS Dubai has served the business of U.A.E. and the Middle East region since 2000. You can rely on the knowledge and experience of our Professionals to provide you with an accurate feasibility study.

Saeed Business Management Services has rapidly developed one of the leading specialists Intellectual Property Section in its Consulting Division. Clients have come to know that they can confidently rely on our comprehensive range of in-house legal services to establish, protect and enforce their intellectual property rights, not only in the UAE, but throughout the Gulf Region and the world. SMS Dubai. have goals to protect its clients' rights by conducting trademark searches and coordinating trademark, copyright, industrial design and patent registration programmes in the UAE and elsewhere in the world.

The regulation of intellectual property rights in a society is governed by two opposing ideas - the need to foster innovation by means of rewarding intellectual products and the ability of society to benefit from and have efficient access to such products. While attempting to spawn the advent of new ideas and innovations, governments must also ensure that new inventions will be properly disseminated so that society may enjoy the advantages of the said innovations.

Copyrights

SMS Dubai. Realizes the importance of the Copyright Protection because these rights are perpetual and inalienable and include the right to publish for the first time, the right of paternity, the right of integrity and the right to withdraw a work from circulation in certain circumstances. On the other hand, Copyright Protection brings in the exclusive right to license the use of the work, through any means, particularly reproduction including electronic loading and storage, any form of representation, broadcasting or re-broadcasting, public performance or broadcasting, translation, modification, alteration, leasing, rental, lending or any form of publication including access through computer or information network, communication network or other means. The author shall also have the right to assign all or part of his economic right.

The historical background of the Copyright Law and its implementation in the UAE came into force on 12 April 1993 and 1 September 1994, respectively. This Law was repealed on 14 July 2002 by publication in the Official Gazette of UAE Federal Law No. 7 of 2002 regarding Copyright and Related Rights.

Domain Names

Domain name is an address on the Internet, and is commonly used to find a particular 'website'. The name actually translates to a number or more correctly a series of numbers, roughly comparable to a telephone number. Like a telephone number, an Internet address is unique, that is to say, no two are the same. And like a telephone number, it serves to connect "callers" to one specific place on the Net.

SMS Dubai provide specialist advice to choose a domain name which is not in conflict with the trademark of another company, particularly a well known trademark. This is because many national laws, or courts, treat registration of the trademark of another company or person as a domain name as trademark infringement, popularly known as cyber-squatting. If this happens, then your business may not only have to transfer or cancel the domain name, but it may also have to pay damages or a heavy fine.

Industrial Designs

Industrial design or model must be new or novel, and can be used as an industrial or crafty product, and should not be in violation of the public order or morale in the UAE. Industrial designs or models shall be granted a decision of the Minister of Finance and Industry and also published in the Journal upon payment of the required fee. An opposition period is allowed for any interested party to be filed against the published industrial design or model within 60 days from publication otherwise industrial design or model shall be registered in the special Register kept at the Industrial Property Directorate at the Ministry of Finance and Industry.

MAIN BRANCHES OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Intellectual property comprises of creation of the human mind, of the human intellect.

It consists mainly of two branches, one being industrial property dealing with technological inventions, utility models, trademarks for goods and services, industrial designs, etc; and other being copyright, which protects literary, musical, artistic, photographic and audiovisual works, films, computer programs and software, etc; as well as related rights, that are neighbouring on copyright (neighbouring rights), namely the rights of performing artists, producers of phonograms and broadcasting organizations.

Patents

Patent is a right associated with any new invention resulting from a novel idea or novel improvement of an invention protected by a patent, in all fields of technology, whereby the idea or improvement is based on scientific principles and capable of industrial exploitation, whether it be new industrial products, or developed industrial methods, or new applications of common industrial methods.

The right to a patent may be assigned or licensed to a third party. An assignment shall have no effect against third parties unless it has been recorded at the Patent Office and published in the Official Gazette. Working of patents in the United Arab Emirates is an official requirement.

If the owner of a patented invention does not satisfy the stipulated working requirements within 4 years from the filing date, or the owner refuses to license it under a contract of fair terms, then the patent will be subject to compulsory licensing under the provisions of the law.

Trademarks

A trademark is a sign capable of distinguishing the goods or services produced or provided by an enterprise from those of other enterprises. Therefore, any distinctive words, letters, numerals, drawings, pictures, shapes, colours, logotype, labels or combination used to distinguish goods or services may be considered a trademark. In some countries advertising slogans are also considered trademarks. Moreover, many countries allow for the registration of single colours, three dimensional signs (shape of products or packaging), sounds and smells.

Preliminary Checklist for Selecting your Trademark

• Check that your trademark of choice meets all the legal requirements for registration.
• Do a trademark search to make sure that it is not identical or confusingly similar to existing trademarks.
• Make sure the trademark is easy to read, write, spell and remember and is suitable to all types of advertising media.
• Make sure the mark does not have any undesired connotations in your language or in any of the languages of potential export markets.
• Check that the corresponding domain name (i.e., internet address) is available for registration.