Intellectual property or intangible property

created by a mental and may be invisible and harder to value than physical property

Infringement

unauthorized use of intellectual property in violation of the owner’s rights

Trademark

A commercial symbol that a manufacturer prints on its good so they can be readily identified in the marketplace

Lanham Act 

Allows trademarks to be registered with the Patent and Trademark Office in D.C. if there is a intent to use it for commerce

Priority of use 

the first person to use a trademark has the right to sop others from using the same trademark or symbol

pay $325 and fill out an application

Infringement

a seller causes confusion about the origins of a product by improper use of a trademark

o   Ex. Company other than Reebok designs shoes and calls them Reeboks

Dilution

the owner of a well known mark will be entitled to compensation if another person uses a similar mark which in turn lessens the value and meaning of the original mark

Ex. Company sells guitars with the brand name Reebok

Cybersquatting

when a trademark is used improperly an in bad

Ex. registering the name reebokshoes.com without the permission of Reebok the company

What are the defenses to infringement, dilution and cybersquatting

o   Fair use (mention the mark in advertising)

o   Non-commercial use (parody)

o   News reporting or educational use

Counterfeiting

 the copying or imitation of a trademark without authority to do so

What is Trade Dress?

includes the size , shape, texture, graphics, and sales techniques of products which are “inherently distinctive”

The mark must be distinctive and have a secondary meaning

the significance of a mark is to identify the source of the product rather than the product itself

Service Marks

applies to advertising, insurance, hotels, restaurants, and entertainment

o   Ex. “home of the whopper”

Certification Mark

any word symbol or device that is used in commerce to certify regional or geographic origin

o   Ex. “made in Montana”

Collective Mark

 used in commerce by members of a cooperative, an association or other organization

o   Ex. marks used in memberships of unions

Trade Name

the name of a company or business

They are NOT protected by common law

Goodwill

When firms have created significant value on their trademark and the trust of many customers

Ex. Coca-cola

Copyright Act of 1976 

protects expressions from the time they are printed, sung, used in a computer etc.

Last the life of the author plus 70 years 

Material written by employees last 95 years from the date of publication

·      fill out copyright form

·      pay $35 dollar fee

using copywritten material for purposes of criticism, comment, news reporting, scholarship, or research is legal

1.   The purpose for the copying

2.   The nature of the copyrighted work

3.   The extent of the copying

4.   The effect of the copying on the market for the work

Patent

a grant which give the inventor the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, or selling the invention for 20 years after the inventor files the application.

Utility Patents (most common) 

designated for manufactured articles and plant patents of new varieties of plants, GMOs

Trade Secrets

any formula, pattern, device or compilation of information which is used in one’s business to give them an advantage over competitors who do not know the secret

tangible and intangible things and everything permanently attached to it

Ex. land, buildings

created the cause-of-action when another business does something that lessons the value of a similar trademark

ex. diluting vokda with water

1. fanciful

2. arbitrary

3. suggestive

4. little secondary meaning

1.  restrict access to the ino

2. limit # of people who know the info

3. have people sign agreement to not disclose the secret

4. mark written material as property of the owner

1. prove trade secret exist

2. it was acquired illegally

3. it was used without permission

laws of nature

natural phenomenon

abstract ideas

Designs - 14 years

Inventions - 20 years

1. fixed idea

2. originality

3. creative

4. use the appropiate mark

5. registered

Gives civil and criminal sanction for anyone who circumvents encryption software or other anti-piracy protections

Ex. regulates programs like limewire and napster