An industrial design generally constitutes the ornamental or aesthetic aspects of various articles, such as the three dimensional features (e.g., shapes) or two dimensional features (e.g., patterns, lines or colors) of packages, containers, furniture, household goods, lighting equipment, jewelry, electronic devices, and textiles. Industrial designs can be protected in many countries by a design patent.
Intellectual Property
API Protection Under Copyright Is Upheld by Federal Circuit
There has been a lingering, divisive question in the software industry as to whether application programming interfaces (APIs) are entitled to copyright subject matter protection. Critics argue that this type of source code is functional in nature and, as such, should not be protected by copyright. However, in Oracle America, Inc. v. Google, Inc.…
The Global Patent Prosecution Highway – Global Protection on a Budget
Posted on
Patent prosecution can be a slow and expensive process. A business or an applicant may wish to accelerate the process of procuring a patent for a number of reasons including, engaging in enforcement activity and reducing investor’s or licensee’s perceived risks. A decisive factor for businesses and applicants seeking patent protection in key global markets…
Patent Trolls, Defensive Groups, and Pooling
By Polin Chieu on
Posted in Intellectual Property, Patent Law
A common topic of patent reform discussions are patent trolls.[1] Patent trolls, who often gather patent portfolios and assert patents against others in an effort to collect licensing fees or patent infringement damages, are often criticized as a flaw in the current patent system that hurts the very innovation that the patent system is…