Apple and Samsung are finally butting heads in the courtroom over the patent infringement case that has been two years in the works. Apple is demanding $2 billion from Samsung for infringing on the following patents: slide-unlock to prevent pocket dialing, word correction, contextual links, universal phone search capability and data syncing. Samsung is also
The U.S. government has taken bold measures to crack down on the distribution of counterfeit apps. Illegally distributing counterfeit apps is clearly copyright infringement. On Monday, March 24, the two men responsible for AppBucket pled guilty to conspiracy to commit copyright infringement. AppBucket was a popular website that sold counterfeit Android apps at low prices.
Once an individual or organization uses a mark commercially, they are entitled to common law rights and can sue others for trademark infringement if necessary. Of course, registering a trademark endows the owner with certain legal advantages that a common law mark would not afford: A registered mark is less likely to be infringed upon,
Though Getty Images rarely sues those who use their photographs without permission, it still qualifies as copyright infringement to use their stock photos found elsewhere on the internet. Previously, Getty was known for sending settlement demand letters to individuals and organizations using their photographs without any preemptive cease-and-desist letters. The letters would ask for incredibly
In order to make a claim of patent infringement against an individual or organization, the infringing product must perform all of the functions laid out in the patent. For example, if an inventor registers a patent on a device that combs your hair, brushes your teeth and cooks you breakfast, he cannot sue another organization
An individual or organization can produce a mark strikingly similar to a registered trademark, as long as the mark’s intent is humorous, in which case it is protected as parody. However, parody protection is a very ambiguous area of intellectual property litigation, because insulting parodies can still incite lawsuits. A mark is most likely to
Trade secrets refer to an organization’s proprietary knowledge that provides a competitive edge and would be detrimental if released, according to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO). Often trade secrets are difficult to obtain, not known outside of the organization and subject to security measures. Most states, California included, have adopted the Uniform Trade Secrets
An unregistered trademark lacks many means of protection against infringement. However, simply registering a trademark with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) on your own does not always mean that the mark will be completely protected, because you may make common errors that open your mark up to infringement. The legal process of trademark
Hypothetically, a group of neighbors starts a small company that only operates for a few hours each week and puts out a product with a potentially infringing mark. However, they only produce a very small amount of this product and sell just enough to cover their production costs. Even though the hypothetical small business with
A coalition of trademark holders can register a collective mark to signify membership. Most of the time this practice is used by a group of businesses whose goods or services are produced at a common level of quality. For instance, if there is a long history of independent carpenters in rural Vermont who use a
