Nov 30, 20090

China Releases Proposal for National Patent Standards

By: Ian McClure
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China's Standardization Adminstration (SAC) recently posted a draft patent regulation titled "Regulations for the Administration of the Formulation and Revision of Patent-Involving National Standards."  After reading some analysis of the draft standard-setting regulation, it seems that these standards are not far off from many Western patent-office standards and patent regulations.  There are, as expected, a few concerns.  One of the major concerns is found in Article 8 of the draft regulation, which purports to deem any company which fails to satisfy disclosure ... Read More

Categories: Today in IP
Nov 17, 20090

USPTO Launches New Public Blog: David Kappos’ Director’s Forum

By: Ian McClure
uspto

As patent reform discussions heat up, it is important that intellectual property professionals, inventors, businesses, and academics stay abreast of the issues and have a common forum for sharing points of view.  Apparently, David Kappos and his USPTO team are on top of this, because the USPTO has launched a public blog called the Director's Forum, where David Kappos himself will be publicly addressing its readers with the ongoings of the USPTO.  Transparency is key to the advancement of the IP market, and ... Read More

Categories: Today in IP
Nov 17, 20090

Changing the Way Business is Done: The Performance Right Act Moves Through Washington

By: Ian McClure
radio1

Sometimes legislation changes an entire business model, even one that has been set in place for nearly a century.  While the music industry has been going through such changes due to both technology advancements and the legislation that has tried to keep up with them, the terrestrial radio business, although tangential to the music industry, has enjoyed its business model without much interruption.  This all might change with the Performance Right Act (H.R. 848), which is slowly making its way through Washington. As ... Read More

Categories: Copyright Caucus
Nov 10, 20090

Bilski in the U.S. Supreme Court: The fate of business method patents awaits . . .

By: Ian McClure

Oral arguments in the Bilski case began yesterday before the U.S. Supreme Court.  Gathering from the numerous blogs and other sites covering the arguments, it is apparent that the Justices were ready, questioning both sides incessantly on their arguments' weaknesses.  A large question in the minds of the Justices is whether the authors of the 1952 Patent Act contemplated patenting business methods.  The patentability of business methods awaits its fate.  There are numerous blogs with full coverage of the arguments.  See IP Watchdog, ... Read More

Categories: Today in IP
Nov 4, 20090

Legal “Safe Harbors” For Bloggers and Other Internet Service Providers

By: Ian McClure
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As a blogger myself, unknown legal risks involved in providing content on the internet are always a concern. The growth in internet marketing, social networking, and other uses of the internet for business and collaboration has provoked an new need for legal protection from unwanted or unwise uses of these mediums. For instance, a blogger may control his or her own blog content, but what about the unsolicited comments? Can harrassment, derogatory language, or other unwanted uses of the comments section subject ... Read More

Categories: Copyright Caucus, Trademark Trends