Nov 17, 2009
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
Nov 10, 2009
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
Nov 4, 2009
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
Oct 20, 2009
I was introduced today to a new and intriguing blog titled Intellectual Profit, authored by Raymond Hegarty. A recent post titled "Ten Reasons for a Separate IP Commercialization Business Unit" caught my eye. Noting the recent encouragement from IP professionals for the CIPO position within the C-Suite of companies, Hegarty makes the argument for bypassing this extra seat in the board room, and leading the CIPO to his own and separate business unit, even in another jurisdiction. This is a move that, ... Read More
Oct 19, 2009
Progressive and successful intellectual property management involves not only the expertise of a lawyer, but also integrates knowledge and experience from various disciplines of the IP market, including valuation, sales, accounting, tax, and the ability to navigate the market with a network of relationships and an understanding of the market players. This was the reason London-based Coller IP Management was launched. An off-shoot of private equity head, Coller Capital, the IP consultancy combines commercial and technology expertise with patent and trademark lawyers to offer somewhat of ... Read More
Oct 13, 2009
I have posted previously on the continued discussions by the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL) Working Group VI (Security Interests) regarding issues in intellectual property that are raised by the inconsistencies between intellectual property law and secured transactions law. These issues have become the focal point for this Group as they attempt to put together an IP addendum to the Legislative Guide on Secured Transactions, which is to be adopted by member states.
IP Finance has kept up with the ... Read More
Oct 7, 2009
On September 25, 2009, the Sixth Circuit handed down a decision in Cincom Systems, Inc. v. Novelis Corp. regarding the effect of an internal corporate restructuring on an intellectual property license. Although the court interpreted Ohio merger law, it promulgated broad holdings with regard to (1) the controlling law for the interpretation and assignability of intellectual property licenses, (2) the controlling law for determining whether a merger results in the transfer of an intellectual property license, and (3) the implications of effecting ... Read More
Sep 29, 2009
President Obama named Victoria A. Espinel the first IP czar, charged with the responsibility of enforcing the nation's intellectual property laws. The position is a product of the ProIP Act, signed into legislation last year. Ms. Espinel has served as an advisor on intellectual property issues to the staff of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Senate Finance Committee, House Judiciary Committee and House Ways and Means Committee.
More on the appointment and Victoria A. Espinel HERE. Read More
Sep 25, 2009
An interesting piece by Jackie Hutter over at the IP Asset Maximizer Blog uses some narrow empirical data offered by Marcus Malek of the Intangitopia Blog to dispell the notion that intellectual property auctions have provided any benefits for individual inventors or patent holders. The piece was written in response to this NY Times article by Steve Lohr, which claims that "patent auctions offer protections to inventors." Ms. Hutter "wonder[s] if the fact-checkers took a break when this article was presented for publication," adding that ... Read More
Sep 24, 2009
The World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) today announced a partnership with the International Federation of Musicians (FIM) and the International Federation of Actors (FIA) to improve recognition and treatment of musicians and actors internationally. Specifically, the agreement seeks to address the recognition of these workers' rights in developing countries, and especially with regard to their intellectual property rights. From a WIPO press release today:
The agreement highlights the connection between IP and labor and the special concerns of cultural workers from the viewpoint ... Read More
Ian McClure is a former corporate & securities and intellectual property law attorney with 
Trevor M. Blum is a former Associate in the Chicago-based, valuation practice group of Ocean Tomo, LLC., an intellectual property (IP) consultancy. Additionally, he provided instrumental research support to Intellectual Property Exchange International, Inc., an IP exchange start-up. Trevor holds a B.S. from Indiana University and is currently an MBA candidate at the University of Cambridge, focusing on international business and finance. His interests also include entrepreneurship, economics, and informational visualization. He enjoys running and cycling in his free time. Trevor seeks to bring a transnational business perspective to the blog. 