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Category : News, analysis

May 17, 2013

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 57, May 17, 2013

Podcast (stream or download): In this episode, Tony and Ananda discuss the Supreme Court's decision in the controversial Bowman v. Monsanto case. But Tony thinks that a decision, or rather non-decision, by the Federal Circuit in CLS Bank v. Alice is more interesting. Also, the inaugural segment of Listener Mail. The podcast is also available at Apple's iTunes Store.

May 10, 2013

From the archives of 'Do You Copy': The copyright episode(1)

Podcast (stream or download): No new podcast this week, so listeners aching for a fix might try to give another listen to Episode 21, a timeless discussion of the underpinning intent and logic of copyright law.

May 3, 2013

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 56, May 3, 2013

Podcast (stream or download): This week's episode features discussions on decisions related to the DMCA's safe harbors, a patent on airline seating knocked out by video evidence, and a mini-rant on a paucity of challenges to covered business method patents. The 'Do You Copy?' Podcast is now available for free at the iTunes Store.

April 30, 2013

Ten Things You Need to Know About Social Media and Intellectual Property

Bloomberg BNA full story:  An outside author contribution (accessible to both subscribers and non-subscribers)   to BNA's Patent, Trademark & Copyright Law Journal by Peter M. Brody and ...

April 16, 2013

College sports and publicity rights issue hits the big time

Blog exclusive: BNA's Patent, Trademark & Copyright Journal has for years been covering conferences presented by the Institute for Intellectual Property and Social Justice at Howard...

April 12, 2013

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 54, April 12, 2013

Podcast (stream or download):   In this week's episode of "Do You Copy?," Ananda and Tony discuss the big picture when it comes to Novartis's failure to get a patent on its improved cancer drug. And then it's on to two decisions in which copyrights are pitted against service providers. In one case, Tony revisits an old rant against the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit when talking about the latest decision in the Aereo case. And Ananda talks about the downfall of ReDigi's attempt to sell second-hand digitized music.

March 15, 2013

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 52, March 15, 2013

Podcast (stream or download):  Announcement: "Do You Copy?": Bloomberg BNA's Intellectual Property Law Podcast is now available for free at the iTunes Store. Do a search for "BNA" podcasts and subscribe to the "INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY" podcast. You can also find it through this URL: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/intellectual-property/id625225058?mt=2    On this week's podcast, Ananda and Tony marvel at Congress's sudden interest in intellectual property issues. They discuss the introduction of the Shield Act, which is intended to address the patent troll problem. They also discuss the political furore over cellphone unlocking.  

March 5, 2013

From Tyson to Towers: Five Unusual Copyright Tales and What They Tell Us

Copyright is serious business. More than a few times, however, it has been invoked in curious circumstances that sometimes entertain us and occasionally leave us scratching our heads. The following...

February 25, 2013

Businesses Welcome Google Deal With Government, Publishers in France

Bloomberg BNA full story: Europe-based BNA correspondent Rick Mitchell provided this writeup of Google's deal with the French government to create an $81.3 million fund to help French newspaper...

February 15, 2013

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 50, Feb. 15, 2013

Podcast (stream or download): Tony reports on his visit to the Federal Circuit to hear arguments on software patenting and Ananda notes that the long-simmering disparaging trademark issue involving Washington's professional football club has recently become a subject of public interest again.  

February 15, 2013

Obama Nominates Chen, Hughes to Federal Circuit; Taranto's Nomination Moves to Full Senate

Bloomberg BNA full story: Tony Dutra's writeup  about the three new nominations for a seat on the Federal Circuit bench, appearing in BNA's Patent, Trademark & Copyright Law Daily...

February 7, 2013

Be careful when you color my world, Petula

Blog exclusive: My favorite band recently came to town. All the members of this band wear a distinctive canary yellow suit...

January 15, 2013

Senate and House Judiciary Committees Take Shape for 113th Congress

Bloomberg BNA full story: Tony Dutra's notes on the Senate and House legislators who will be responsible for intellectual property legislation in the 113th Congress, appearing in BNA's Patent,...

December 27, 2012

Kappos to Step Down As Head of PTO in January

Bloomberg BNA full story: Tamlin H. Bason's writeup of David J. Kappos's decision to step down as director of the Patent and Trademark Office in January, appearing in BNA's Patent, Trademark...

November 21, 2012

PTO's Kappos says software patent critics should ‘move beyond the flippant rhetoric'

Bloomberg BNA full story: Tony Dutra's writeup of PTO Director Kappos's defense of software patents for...

November 16, 2012

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 44, Nov. 16, 2012

Podcast (stream or download): In this week's podcast, Tony rants about the high fees for the new inter partes review system at the PTO. And he suspects that there were some hidden reasons for doubling the number of administrative patent judges when setting up the new Patent Trial and Appeal Board. Ananda and Tony also discuss changes on the Federal Circuit bench and whether that might have any impact on the court's jurisprudential balance.  

November 14, 2012

Webinar discusses split in Federal Circuit: Hatch-Waxman safe harbor a ‘safe ocean'?

Bloomberg BNA full story: Tony Dutra's writeup of a webinar discussion about the scope of the Hatch-Waxman Act's safe harbor for...

October 26, 2012

Coalition seeks to lobby Congress in support of stronger rights under first sale doctrine

Bloomberg BNA full story: Anandashankar Mazumdar's writeup of the formation of a new group promising to pressure Congress to support stronger rights under the first sale doctrine for...

October 24, 2012

Federal Circuit Bar Association to Offer Clearinghouse for Pro Bono Patenting Aid

Bloomberg BNA full story: Tony Dutra's writeup of a progam to help inventors find pro bono patent law services for...

October 16, 2012

CLS v. Alice en banc: Finally resolving post-Bilski mess?

Blog exclusive: We may finally be making progress toward finding an answer to the question: Is Section 101 of the Patent Act a "coarse filter" that pretty much lets everything through, or the only...

October 5, 2012

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 39, Oct. 5, 2012

Podcast (stream or download): Ananda and Tony chat about a victim of the statutory numbering problem that came up in Episode 38. Moving on to X-box news, the next topic is Motorola's efforts to set a royalty rate for use of patents incorporated into an industry standard. And then peculiar wording in an Indiana statute requires a court to decide that selling a toy gun is, under the state's counterfeiting law, "uttering a writing."  

September 27, 2012

He-who-must-not-be-named

Blog exclusive: One person's understanding of a word or expression can be vastly different from another's reading of the same thing, and if you're ignorant of such differences it can get you into trouble. For example...

September 20, 2012

Address to a deep-fried, unauthorized Mars bar (Plus: Haggis)

Blog exclusive: What food comes to mind when you think of Scotland? For me, it's haggis...

August 31, 2012

From the archives of 'Do You Copy': The copyright episode

Podcast (stream or download): Tony and Ananda are taking an enforced holiday from the podcast this week (Tony is serving the public on jury duty), so listeners aching for a fix might try to give another listen to Episode 21, a timeless discussion of the underpinning intent and logic of copyright law. Enjoy and come back next week for updates on the latest in IP law, including commentary about the stunning jury verdict in the Apple v. Samsung trial...  

August 30, 2012

Def Leppard 'wrestles' songs back from label

Blog exclusive: Rock band Def Leppard decided to "wrestle control" of their back catalog from their old label by ...

August 24, 2012

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 35, August 24, 2012

Podcast (stream or download): In this week's podcast, Tony expresses significant frustration regarding the Federal Circuit's failure to apply the Supreme Court's Mayo decision in any meaningful way when considering Myriad on remand. ... But before getting to that topic, Ananda and Tony disagree regarding the implications of a federal district court judge's insistence that Oracle and Google reveal which bloggers might be receiving payola ... Ananda also tells Tony the story of a local TV news reporter who uses copyright law to get back at Hustler magazine for publishing a nude photograph of her...  

August 23, 2012

It's trademark storytime

Blog exclusive: Trademarks are protected when they indicate the source of the product or service. But when marks instead indicate the product or service itself, they become “genericized.” In the United...

August 16, 2012

Respect for the ink: Few dispute tattoos

Blog exclusive: Richard Bingler recently posted about the zealous protection of the Olympic rings and related marks by the London Organising Committee on the Olympic and Paralympic Games. This got me thinking about tattoos...

August 14, 2012

Even the good reporters are misusing the term 'copyright'!

Blog exclusive: A recent report by WNYC's On the Media misuses the term "copyright" in a way that Ananda finds very troubling ...

August 9, 2012

The undercurrent of evidence wars in Apple v. Samsung: the rise of design patents

Back in May, I wrote on this blog that the Apple v. Samsung  case featured one fascinating development - the potential to get an injunction via design  patent infringement that was...

August 7, 2012

No sausage rings in the shape of the Olympics symbol? Steady on, there!

Blog exclusive: That's right. A butcher in Dorset (a county in southwest England) was forced to remove said "offending" rings...

August 2, 2012

Megaupload's bid for dismssal a goldmine for procedure enthusiasts

Blog exclusive: The lack of relevant case law coupled with the high profile nature of the case complicate a distrct judge's task as he prepares to rule on Megaupload's motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction...

July 27, 2012

WIPO members agree to advance treaties for broadcasting organizations, visually impaired

Bloomberg BNA full story: Geneva correspondent Daniel Pruzin's writeup of WIPO's progress on negotiations over treaties on broadcasting and copyright exceptions for... 

July 20, 2012

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 30, July 20, 2012

Podcast (stream or download): In Episode 30 of the "Do You Copy?" Podcast, Ananda and Tony discuss a decision that finds the Copyright Royalty Board unconstitutional under the Appointments Clause and the decision in New York federal court that finds no infringement on the part of Aereo's video distribution service. 

July 17, 2012

It’s still good advice to 'play nice'

Blog exclusive: I once read of a study showing that one of the major reasons why physicians are sued for malpractice is because when a doctor is confronted with a complaint from a patient, he or she usually doesn’t accept responsibility for a mistake and then fully apologize to the patient for having made it (an example of “not playing nice”)...

July 16, 2012

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 29, July 16, 2012

Podcast (stream or download): In Episode 29 of "Do You Copy?," Ananda and Tony discuss Siniouguine v. Mediachase, which has some potentially interesting implications for employers who want to ensure that they own the copyright interest to their employees' work product. Tony's direct experience in the software industry leads him to take the side of both software development company and software programmer. Also on the agenda is another disagreement on the Federal Circuit over the meaning of Mayo v. Prometheus in a case that might represent an attempt to "cabin" the Supreme Court's landmark ruling...  

July 12, 2012

Fed. Cir. splits on Mayo application; China issues revision of copyright law for comment

Bloomberg BNA full stories: Tony Dutra's writeup of the Federal Circuit's split decision on the patentability of method, system, and computer medium claims for eliminating risk in bank exchange obligations for.... Beijing correspondent Leslie Pappas's writeup of the release for comment of a new draft of China's copyright law for...

July 9, 2012

'Do You Copy?' Podcast, Episode 28, July 9, 2012

Podcast (stream or download): Things have been hot in old D.C. with a heatwave and a storm that knocked out power for more than a million people. But Ananda and Tony finally did manage to get into the air-conditioned studios at the Bell Street headquarters...  

July 5, 2012

Thomas Jefferson's patent law balance: Happy Independence Day

Blog exclusive: It was Independence Day yesterday, and my mind turned to the Declaration of Independence and its writer, Thomas Jefferson.  The Declaration introduced a dichotomy that American political...

July 3, 2012

Will the Supreme Court review the Federal Circuit's claim construction mess?

Blog exclusive: It's the end of the Supreme Court's term, and there were no cert grants in patent cases. A one-year reprieve, maybe, but the high court asked for the views of the solicitor general in three cases...

June 28, 2012

He let the world know about some infringement and now he's getting sued for raising $200K for charity. Wait, what?

Blog excusive: When a putative plaintiff tests the limits of copyright protection for original internet content, it helps to develop this constantly changing area of law, so we can be more informed when new disputes arise. But when a plaintiff tries to get the law on his side using finger-pointing and other schoolyard gestures... 

June 27, 2012

Countries adopt performance rights treaty; May advance Chinese copyright law reforms

Bloomberg BNA full story: Shenzhen correspondent Michael Standaert's writeup of the enactment of a new treaty covering audiovisual performances for...

June 26, 2012

Standup comedy and the rise of an informal intellectual property regime

Blog exclusive: The "no stealing jokes" rule in the standup comedy industry is an illustration of an intellectual property regime arising to protect creativity in the absence of a formal legal regime...

November 4, 2009

NBC Universal's views on copyright enforcement and piracy

Video (C-Span): Rebecca joins Peter Slen on C-Span's The Communicators talk to Rick Cotton, general counsel for NBC Universal, about...