
US pizza chain Papa John’s makes first foray into Central Africa
Brand debuts in the DRC with an outlet in Kinshasa, complementing its existing African presence in Kenya, Egypt and Morocco.
NEUROSCIENCE
By our News Team | 2023
Human evidence can be highly fallible when possible trademark infringements are being considered by courts. Scientists have a solution.
Imagine you’re browsing the toothpaste aisle and see next to Colgate a new brand called Colddate, packaged in a box with similar colours and designs. “You might think this is clearly a copycat brand,” said Ming Hsu of the University of California, Berkeley.
Yet in a real-life trademark infringement case involving these two brands, Colgate-Palmolive lost the suit, with the judge saying they were “similar” but not “substantially indistinguishable”.
Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko from Pexels
There are often different opinions between parties in trademark cases about how similar the brands in question actually are, leading to large inconsistencies in the application of the law.
In a paper published this week in the journal Science Advances, Hsu and academic colleagues propose a more scientific measure through the use of brain scans – employing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) along with a specialised technique called repetition suppression (RS).
“Asking the brain, not a person, could reduce – if not eliminate – these inconsistencies,” explained lead author Zhihao Zhang, a former UC Berkeley postdoctoral researcher. The study’s other authors include Dr Andrew Kayser of UC San Francisco, Femke van Horen of Vrije University Amsterdam, and Mark Bartholomew of University at Buffalo Law School in the US.
What is ‘similarity’?
The standard according to the law is whether a ‘reasonable person’ would find two trademarks similar, but it usually doesn’t define what ‘similar’ means.
Often the evidence brought by the opposing parties takes the form of consumer surveys, which have been shown to be susceptible to manipulation – for example, through the use of leading questions.
“There is no gold standard in the law about what background information survey respondents receive, how the questions are phrased, and what criteria of ‘similarity’ should be followed – all factors that can change the results substantially,” Zhang said.
Putting brains on the witness stand
In their paper, the researchers demonstrated how looking directly into the brain may help solve this conundrum. They put participants in fMRI scanners and rapidly showed them pairs of images consisting of the main brand and a supposed copycat brand.
Previous research has consistently shown that when presented with two similar images, the brain suppresses activity for the second image, perhaps out of efficiency, thinking it’s already seen the image. By measuring the amount of repetition suppression (RS) in brain activity for the second image, the researchers determined how similar a person found the two images.
The resulting approach provides an important benefit: Participants are blind to the goal of the study, which further reduces bias. “This is because we don’t have to ask them any questions at all or tell them what it means to be similar or not,” explained Hsu.
This kind of evidence could be provided as an additional ‘spot check’ to survey evidence, giving a court of law confidence the surveys are accurate, Hsu added. The cost of using neuroimaging is comparable to compiling and presenting survey data in legal cases.
Brand debuts in the DRC with an outlet in Kinshasa, complementing its existing African presence in Kenya, Egypt and Morocco.
Confederation has fast-paced online Express Courses you can complete in a week, to in-depth studies taking up to 10 months.
World Bank report paints positive picture, but emphasises that enhancing ports and related infrastructure could boost GDP by 4-5%.
More consistent date labels and storage advice – along with bigger print and the use of simple icons – could save consumers money.
Proposed measures include banning advertisements on television, digital platforms and outdoor media when children are the primary audience.
Afoani leaves role as Head of Sales and Marketing – Africa at the IFFCO Group to become Senior Director for Coca-Cola Uplift – Africa.
MAZ unveils teen awards event, research survey and logo design competition – all promoting effective engagement with youth audiences.
CM(A) is a high-level pan-African professional designation awarded to senior marketers in recognition of their experiences and skills.
Boston Consulting Group study finds optimism over GenAI has risen markedly among marketing bosses, while concerns have dropped.
Public relations giant says it wants to provide more on-the-ground presence for its current and potential client base in Nigeria.
From 20 to 22 August 2025, the African Marketing Confederation (AMC) and the Technology Information Confederation Africa (TICON Africa) will host their annual conferences at the prestigious Labadi Beach Hotel in Accra, Ghana.
Dr. Kin Kariisa is an extraordinary force at the helm of Next Media Services, a conglomerate encompassing NBS TV, Nile Post, Sanyuka TV, Next Radio, Salam TV, Next Communication, Next Productions, and an array of other influential enterprises. His dynamic role as Chief Executive Officer exemplifies his unwavering commitment to shaping media, business, and community landscapes.
With an esteemed academic journey, Dr. Kariisa’s accolades include an Honorary PhD in exemplary community service from the United Graduate College inTexas, an MBA from United States International University in Nairobi, Kenya, a Master’s degree in Computer Engineering from Huazong University in China, and a Bachelor’s degree in Statistics from Makerere University.
Dr. Kariisa pursued PhD research in Computer Security and Identity Management at Security of Systems Group, Radboud University in Nijmegen, Netherlands. As a dynamic educator, he has shared his expertise as a lecturer of e-Government and Information Security at both Makerere University and Radboud University.
Dr Kin did his PhD research in Computer Security and Identity Management at Security of Systems Group, Radbond University in Nigmegen, Netherlands. He previously served as a lecturer of e-Government and Information Security at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda and Radbond University in Netherlands.
Dr Kin did his postgraduate courses in Strategic Business Management, Strategic Leadership Communication and Strategies for Leading Successful Change Initiatives at Harvard University, Boston USA.