The ‘claims’ of a patent dictate the rights of the patent owner and define the property created by the patent. Where the invention is something physical, such as a machine or a drug, it is relatively easy to show infringement – the patent owner must show that the infringer made, used, or sold the machine […]
Blog – Adam Garson Law
Ask Dr. Copyright …
November 27, 2013
Ask Dr. Copyright, Copyright
Dear Doc: While searching online, I came across thousands of books – not on Amazon.com, but on Google! I could actually read the pages of those books because the words matched what I had searched, and most of the books were scanned right from the library. That’s cool – and really useful, but I thought […]
Branding Rules While Candy Bars Wage Battle ….
November 27, 2013
Trademark
If you ever doubted the economic importance of branding, take a look at the 2013 World Intellectual Property Report authored by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). For the period from 1987 to 2011, United States investments in branding accounted for close to a quarter of all intangible asset investments! Brand ranking organizations value the […]
PTO’s ‘After Final Consideration’ Pilot Program
November 27, 2013
Patent
By filing a patent application and paying the filing fee, you are entitled to two reviews by the patent examiner. The examiner has a very short and strict time limit to review your application. If the examiner does not meet that time limit, then he or she may not meet productivity goals and may be […]
Six Strikes and You’re Out (of Internet Access) …
September 30, 2013
Copyright
In February of this year, the Center For Copyright Information (CCI) — a group representing rights holders in the media industries — began a so-called “six-strikes” educational campaign to combat Internet piracy. Leading Internet Service Providers (ISP) — Verizon, Time Warner, Cablevision, Comcast and AT&T — are taking part. Here’s how it works. When it […]
Abusive Patent Enforcement – The States Step Up
September 30, 2013
Patent
In general, only the Federal government and Federal courts have jurisdiction over patent matters. However, the Federal government does not have effective tools for protecting individuals and small businesses from abusive and unjustified bullying by patent owners. A small business often cannot afford to defend against a threat of patent litigation and agrees to pay […]
Imagine how surprised some photographers are when we tell them that the government fee for registering the copyrights of a complete photo shoot — comprising hundreds of photographs — is only $35.00 if you do it online. It seems like nothing the government charges these days is only $35.00! It represents one of the best […]
Beware of the On-Sale Bar
August 30, 2013
Patent
If you are a regular reader of this newsletter, then you know that a sale or offer for sale of your invention will terminate your patent rights unless you first file a patent application. Did you know that the on-sale bar also applies to commercial sales of the invention to you, as from a contract […]
Ask Dr. Copyright – What’s Fair Use?
July 31, 2013
Ask Dr. Copyright, Copyright
Dear Doc: I know you’ve explained the legal concept of “fair use” before, but I have a question about that. Does it infringe an author’s copyright in a book to paraphrase one sentence from the book in a movie, if you give credit to the author, or is it fair use? Sincerely, Absolom Absolom, Mississippi […]
The DMCA to the Rescue (Maybe) …
July 31, 2013
Copyright
In a recent embarrassing broadcast by KTVU television of San Francisco, the morning anchor, Tori Campbell, identified the pilots of the recent San Francisco Asiana airline crash as “Captain Sum Ting Wong,” “Wi Tu Lo,” “Ho Lee Fuk,” and “Bang Ding Ow.” As she read the names, Campbell didn’t flinch and, even more perplexing, […]