In the News

• Pages: 31-32

In the News / p–31WIPO/MAGAZINE

IN THE NEWS

EU PROTECTS DARJEELING

Darjeeling, the black tea or iginating from India’s West Bengal

region, became the rst Ind ian product to acquire Protected

Geographical Ind ication (PGI) status within Europe. It is the 7th

non-EU product to be recognized as such, after Colombian

coffee and ve Chinese products.

Some 10 million kilos of Darjeelin g tea are produced on 86 tea

estates (covering over 17,500 acres) each year according the

Darjeeling Tea Association (DTA). Industry ofcials estim ate,

however, that signicantly more Darjeeling tea is so ld as such

on international markets as many packets of tea cont ain blends

from many other origins.

In the EU, existing blends that mix Darje eling with non-Darjeel-

ing tea can continue to use the term for a ve-year tra nsitional

period but will, thereaf ter, have to change their name. The EU

accounts for 60 percent of Dar jeeling tea exports.

REINVENTING

THE PASSENGER

EXPERIENCE

Goodbye backseat boredom! General

Motors (GM) recently announce d its

work on a new concept that promise s

to re-invent the backseat passenger

experience. Under a proj ect called Win-

dows of Opportunity, GM Research a nd

Development is working w ith students

from the Future Lab at the prestigio us

Bezalel Academy of Ar t and Design in

Israel to turn car windows into interactive

displays “capable of stimulating aware -

ness, nurturing curiosity and encourag-

ing a stronger connection w ith the world

outside the vehicle.”

“Traditionally, the use of interactive dis-

plays in cars has been limited to the

driver and front passen ger, but we see

an opportunit y to provide a technology

interface designed specically for rear

seat passengers,” Tom Seder, GM R&D

Lab Group Manager for Human-Machine

Interface, said in a company pre ss re-

lease. “Advanced windows that are ca-

pable of responding to vehicle sp eed

and location could augme nt real world

views with interactive enhanc ements to

provide entertainme nt and educational

value,” he added.

The apps include:

 Otto, an animated character pro-

jected over passing scene ry that

responds in real-time to car per for-

mance, weather and landsc ape. It

offers passenge rs a playful way to

learn about the environ ment they

are travelling through;



Spindow offers passen gers a peek

into other users’ windows around

the globe in real time; and

 Pond allows passengers to stream

and share music and mes sages

with other cars and passe ngers on

the road.

GM has no immediate plans to put

these interactive display windows

into production.

Some 10 million k ilos of Darjee ling are produce d each year in an a rea

covering over 17,500 a cres in the hil ls of India’s West Bengal re gion.

Photo: istock © Max well Attenborou gh