Intellectual property assets: More than money matters
By: Admin | May 22nd, 2013
Hopefully by now, Naples readers understand the value of intellectual property assets. But patents, trademarks and copyrights matter more than just economically. We have found two recent stories that do an excellent job of illustrating why it is important to respect a company’s intellectual property and what happens if other businesses disregard those legal rights. […]
Read More »FBI gets serious about state-sponsored trade secret theft
By: Admin | May 18th, 2013
If you’re under the impression that intellectual property is a rather…dry area, the FBI’s most recent public-relations initiative might change your mind. The FBI believes that state-sponsored theft of trade secrets from American companies has gotten so out of control that it has become a national security concern; when jobs are as scarce as they […]
Read More »Maker’s Marks swats tequila maker over trademark-infringing wax seal
By: Admin | May 11th, 2013
When you see a bottle of liquor with a bright red wax seal on it, what is the first phrase that comes into your head? Beam Inc. hopes that most Florida residents would respond, “Maker’s Mark,” because since its establishment in 1958, the company has invested serious money in marketing its Marker’s Mark bourbon chiefly […]
Read More »Famous authors have different opinions on fan fiction and copyrights
By: Admin | May 5th, 2013
Having flocks of devoted readers is probably one of the greatest compliments an author could ever hope to receive. After all, there is no better proof that people love an author’s work than if millions of them buy it and read it. But what if these hordes of enthusiastic readers take an author’s characters and […]
Read More »Patent office seeking comments regarding extra secrecy for certain applications
By: Admin | April 26th, 2013
National security is a priority that has waxed and waned throughout time. When our country is at war, for example, we are willing to make concessions in the name of national security. But during peacetime, we view it as less of a priority. Recently, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced that it would seek […]
Read More »Lawsuit asks whether recipes can be considered a trade secret
By: Admin | April 20th, 2013
Update: For an interesting perspective on intellectual property as it applies to recipes, check out this story. It originates in Singapore, so the laws naturally are not the same as in the U.S., but the philosophies at work are probably similar. It has been awhile since we have brought Naples readers a story about trade […]
Read More »AOL sells patent portfolio to Microsoft for $1.1 billion
By: Admin | April 10th, 2013
South Florida readers may remember that a month or two ago, we wrote about how the struggling Eastman Kodak Co. was trying to sell off its patent portfolio to raise some much-needed cash. That may be a move that will become more common thanks to two factors: first, companies continue to struggle in our lackluster […]
Read More »It’s Chick-fil-A v. Kale in trademark tussle
By: Admin | April 5th, 2013
For what was intended to be a lighthearted and humorous campaign, Chik-fil-A’s “Eat mor chikin” slogan is stirring up quite a bit of trouble. Naples residents might have seen the advertisements for the chicken-centric fast food joint. Usually, they depict cows or pigs writing the slogan “eat mor chikin,” with the joke being that they […]
Read More »‘Trademark squatting’: The bane of U.S. intellectual property holders
By: Admin | March 30th, 2013
In a recent post, we told south Florida readers about how Yahoo had been accused of “weaponizing” patents. Weaponizing is not the only controversial trend developing in intellectual property today. Another such trend is what is being called “trademark squatting.” Trademark squatting refers to the practice by which foreign companies register the names, slogans and […]
Read More »Florida biotechnology firm wins important patent
By: Admin | March 29th, 2013
Biotechnology is big business here in Florida. The Sunshine State is home to many firms that are making significant and noteworthy progress against some of the most debilitating diseases known to science. Biotechnology firms want to make sure they benefit economically from their research and development, so naturally they seek to patent their breakthroughs. If […]
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