Dear Doc: It seems to me that every time I try to find out about intellectual property licensing, I end up more confused than ever. Are you able to help? Signed, Bothered and Bewildered Dear B&B: You are correct. Licensing is a complex area of business and of the law. Unfortunately, it is in the […]
Dozens of times over the past 10 years, we have written about the “fair use” exception to copyright infringement. You may recall that “fair use” under the U.S. Copyright Act permits limited use of copyrighted works for purposes of “criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, or research.” It’s a complex area and one that is continuously […]
The US Patent and Trademark Office published a patent application on August 13 owned by the United States Postal Service (‘USPS’). The disclosed invention would incorporate Blockchain technology into a vote-by-mail system. Blockchain is the technology used to implement cryptocurrencies and other types of secure transactions. Blockchain allows digital information to be recorded and distributed, but not altered, which […]
Two thousand years ago, the Roman historian Tacticus said that “victory is claimed by all, failure to one alone.” Such is the fate of successful creative works, whether they are music, art, or television shows. In recent years, the Star Trek universe has expanded to include several new shows, including the successful Star Trek: Discovery. […]
Dear Doc:How can federal “troops” (aka officers from Customs and Border Protection) just show up in cities to protect courthouses and other federal property, launch tear gas, and arrest people? Isn’t there something about limited jurisdiction and federalism that makes such things illegal?Signed,Anonymous Protestor Dear AP: You might think that these officers showing up in […]
Let’s say you’ve developed a valuable machine, one that lots of people want to use. You obtain patents for the machine. An infringer learns about the patent and copies the patented machine. You sue the infringer for patent damages. There is no question* that you can collect patent damages for the period of time after […]