intellectual property

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Obama Cracks Down on Patent Trolls

He'll issue executive order to try to curb abuses

(Newser) - President Obama plans to issue five executive orders today aimed at slaying, or at least curtailing, patent trolls—companies that amass a lot of patents purely for licensing and litigation purposes. Obama's orders will, among other things, ask the Patent and Trademark Office to take a harder look at...

Apple's Samsung Apology Mocks 'Not as Cool' Tablet

Uses judge's own words in public posting

(Newser) - Remember when Apple was ordered to post an embarrassing mea culpa on its UK website, proclaiming publicly that Samsung didn't copy the iPad? Well, Apple has complied —and in the court-ordered 14-point font —but with a distinct lack of contrition, quoting extensively from the judge's ruling...

Apple Wins Big: Judge Bans Sales of Samsung Tablet

Galaxy Tab 10.1 ruling marks Apple's 'greatest victory yet' in patent battle

(Newser) - The Galaxy Tab 10.1 is such an iPad rip-off that it can no longer be sold in the US, a district court judge announced yesterday, issuing a preliminary injunction against the sale of Samsung's tablet. Samsung "does not have a right to compete unfairly by flooding the...

Online Piracy Bill Becomes Major Battle

Lobbyists dig in over controversial SOPA measure

(Newser) - A battle is heating up on Capitol Hill over a controversial new bill targeting online piracy. Yesterday Google, Facebook, Yahoo and other web companies took out full-page newspaper ads railing against the House’s recently introduced Stop Online Piracy Act, even as supporters sung its praises at a hearing. “...

Crist Has to Apologize Over David Byrne Song

... on YouTube, no less

(Newser) - Former Florida Gov. Charlie Crist had to eat crow today—on YouTube. As part of a settlement with David Byrne for using a Talking Heads song without permission, Crist had to post a video with a formal apology, reports the Orlando Sentinel . "I pledge that, should there be any...

Jeff Koons Says He Owns Balloon Dogs
 Jeff Koons Says He 
 Owns Balloon Dogs 
Irony alert
Jan 20, 2011 1:39 PM CST

Jeff Koons Says He Owns Balloon Dogs

Artist files copyright complaint against bookend maker

(Newser) - Jeff Koons, the pop artist famous for making shiny, 10-foot-tall statues in the shape of balloon-animal dogs, is now taking legal action against a company that makes book-ends in a similar shape, and a gallery gift shop that sells them. Which is pretty ironic, the New York Times points out,...

Carlos the Jackal Sues to Protect Image

From prison, terrorist claims life as his intellectual property

(Newser) - Ilich Ramírez Sánchez, the imprisoned international terrorist better known as Carlos the Jackal, is suing a French production company making a documentary about him, demanding final cut on the film. Ramírez argues that the film will violate his intellectual property rights to his “biographical image” unless...

Skype Sale in Doubt as Founders Sue eBay

Techies alleges copyright violation costing them $75M a day

(Newser) - The founders of Skype are suing eBay and the investor consortium buying the Internet phone company, accusing them of copyright violation, reports the Wall Street Journal. The suit is only the latest bump in eBay's disastrous ownership of Skype and may complicate the planned $2 billion sale. Janus Friis and...

Leibovitz's $24M Deadline Looms Tuesday

Photographer may be forced to file for bankruptcy

(Newser) - Annie Leibovitz's $24 million question looms Tuesday, the AP reports: Will the photographer of the stars be able to repay a $24 million loan or lose the rights to her catalog of iconic photographs. With such a staggering amount due in only a few days, Leibovitz’s best option...

Real-World Lawyers Set Up Shop in Second Life

(Newser) - A bed designed for avatar sex? That's intellectual property. An agreement between virtual real estate developers? It's an oral contract. Or so say some lawyers, who are opening offices to handle disputes in the virtual, online world of Second Life, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. "It's an emerging area...

Chinese Court Sentences Microsoft Pirates

11 jailed for counterfeit software ring with 'unprecedented' scope

(Newser) - A Chinese court has convicted 11 people of violating copyright laws and sentenced them to as much as 6 1/2  years of prison for working with a counterfeiting ring that sold fake Microsoft products around the world. Microsoft hailed the crackdown on the pirates, whose organization may have made $2...

Court: Lego Can't Trademark Bricks' Shape

Competitor argued that blocks' shape served 'technical' purpose

(Newser) - A European Union court ruled today that Lego can’t trademark the shape of its iconic toy building blocks, Bloomberg reports. The court supported a 2006 decision by the EU trademark agency that said because the raised circles on Lego blocks serve a “utilitarian function,” they are ineligible...

Rowling Wins Copyright Case
 Rowling Wins Copyright Case 
Sep 8, 2008 3:03 PM CDT

Rowling Wins Copyright Case

Judge rules publishing Potter encyclopedia would cause creator 'irreparable harm'

(Newser) - A fan-written "Harry Potter lexicon" will not be published, a federal judge in New York ruled today, finding for author JK Rowling that the reference guide was an infringement of copyright. The ruling held that the book would cause Rowling irreparable harm as a writer, the BBC reports. The...

Studio Went Super-Secret to Protect Batman

Anti-piracy tactics kept bootlegs from diluting buzz just long enough

(Newser) - In a dazzling covert operation, Warner Bros. kept the lid on The Dark Knight so tight pirated copies didn’t hit the Web until 2 days after its Australian premiere—long enough to keep the film’s record opening on track, the Los Angeles Times reports. Digital piracy can keep...

How Piracy Can Boost Business
 How Piracy Can Boost Business
analysis
Jul 19, 2008 11:03 AM CDT

How Piracy Can Boost Business

Companies should copy, buy out, and study intellectual thieves

(Newser) - Intellectual piracy is bad for business, yes, but also inevitable—and companies fare better when turning it to their advantage, the Economist reports. The large (and illegal) volume of music and video exchanged online, for example, can reveal who’s popular in which countries. And Microsoft, which officially battles piracy,...

Tech Giants Join Forces Against 'Patent Trolls'

Fear of lawsuits behind group effort to snap up intellectual property

(Newser) - Some of tech's biggest players are banding together to corner the market on patents key to their various businesses, the Wall Street Journal reports. Companies like Google and Verizon are afraid of being held hostage by small players with a claim on key bits of intellectual property, and wary of...

Senate to Mull Patent Law That Shields Big Biz

Upstarts would get lower damage awards if bill passes

(Newser) - The Senate is planning to look at a patent bill that would limit damage awards and tip the balance of power between corporations and smaller upstarts, the New York Times reports. Backers say the bill will curb gratuitous lawsuits filed against technology giants by speculators known derisively as "patent...

Google Fights Patent Theft Charges
Google Fights Patent Theft Charges
Jan 12, 2008 8:05 PM CST

Google Fights Patent Theft Charges

Northeastern U and partner claim company stole search method

(Newser) - Google denies allegations that it is infringing on a patent held jointly by Northeastern University and a Massachussetts company for an Internet search method, and is countersuing to invalidate the patent, PC World reports. NU and its partner claim Google is infringing a patent they were granted for a distributed...

Court Blocks New Patent Rules
Court Blocks New Patent Rules
Oct 31, 2007 10:40 PM CDT

Court Blocks New Patent Rules

Judge grants injunction for drug giant GlaxoSmithKline

(Newser) - A Federal judge has blocked the US Patent and Trademark Office from implementing tough new patent rules with a temporary injunction in a suit brought by GlaxoSmithKline. The Wall Street Journal reports the new rules would have limited the number of times patent holders may make minor changes to existing...

Google Bares Tool to Hunt & Zap Copyrighted Videos

Technique designed to dodge Viacom lawsuit

(Newser) - Google yesterday unveiled new technology to seek out copyright-protected material on its YouTube site, which the company hopes will head off Viacom's $1 billion lawsuit. The software scans videos, breaks them down into data points and analyzes them so that any matching versions can be flagged and removed "in...

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