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Intellectual Property Law Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Intellectual Property Law

Who Owns Your Name? The Trend And Economic Impact Of Personal Trademarks In The Ncaa Nil Aftermath, Daniel Foster Jul 2023

Who Owns Your Name? The Trend And Economic Impact Of Personal Trademarks In The Ncaa Nil Aftermath, Daniel Foster

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

To aid in understanding the prevalence of personal athlete logos and the trend of ownership and design, Section II will outline the history of this area of trademark law in the United States. It will provide background on the theory of trademark ownership and the development of this intellectual property discipline in the athletic and celebrity sphere. Section II will look at the two common and distinct processes, a company-designed logo versus an athlete-designed logo, and the modern trends in this area. Moving on from this historical discussion, Section III will examine the 2021 decision of NCAA v. Alston, the …


Choreography And Copyright: Why The Law Must Twist And Turn To Serve The Dancing Industry, Gabrielle Mix Jul 2023

Choreography And Copyright: Why The Law Must Twist And Turn To Serve The Dancing Industry, Gabrielle Mix

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

With so many hurdles to jump over for choreographers to earn simple rights, it is time to re-evaluate the process of copyright protection for dance. In part A, this comment will discuss the history of copyright law and choreography. Part B will analyze the requirements copyright has placed on choreography and the struggles courts face in applying them. Part C will discuss the spread of online choreography and the difficulties these choreographers face regarding copyright protection. Part D will discuss additional reasons why choreographers are not seeking copyright protection. Part E will discuss the barriers choreographers face in proving infringement, …


What Covid-19 Retail Bankruptcies Can Teach Us About Intellectual Property In A Post-Pandemic World, Brenna Arbuckle May 2023

What Covid-19 Retail Bankruptcies Can Teach Us About Intellectual Property In A Post-Pandemic World, Brenna Arbuckle

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

Both IP and bankruptcy laws are quite complex. With that in mind, this comment will narrowly focus on what retail bankruptcies amid COVID-19 can teach us about the value of IP, particularly trademarks and trade secrets, post-pandemic. Part II of this comment explores the relevant legal background, in particular IP and bankruptcy laws. Part III provides context regarding the retail industry and delves into relevant pre-pandemic trends. Further, Part IV discusses the impact of COVID-19 on the retail industry, particularly on consumer behaviors and bankruptcy bids. Part IV details lessons from such bankruptcies and the possible impacts on the industry …


The Hollywood Circuit’S Protection Of The Batmobile Provides An Uncertain Future For First Amendment Protections, Nicole Geiser Jan 2022

The Hollywood Circuit’S Protection Of The Batmobile Provides An Uncertain Future For First Amendment Protections, Nicole Geiser

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This Comment analyzes the potentially damaging impact the Ninth Circuit’s decision in Towle could have on modern copyright law and the First Amendment. Part I will provide an overview of modern copyright law, challenges faced when deciding the level of protection that should be afforded to characters, and the important difference between literary characters and visually depicted characters and how it can affect the degree of protection allowed. Part II will discuss the history of character copyright, specifically, the different tests adopted by circuit courts and the impact each one has on the protection of characters. Part III will analyze …


Copyrighting Experiences: How Copyright Law Applies To Virtual Reality Programs, Alexis Dunne Oct 2019

Copyrighting Experiences: How Copyright Law Applies To Virtual Reality Programs, Alexis Dunne

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This note will attempt to shed light on the question of what kind of protection copyright law affords VR experiences. Part II discusses the nature of VR experiences and their implementation through specifically tailored VR technology. Part III provides an overview of copyright protection, its limitations, and specifically the history of the copyrightability of computer programs. Parts IV and V outline case law relevant to the discussion of the copyrightability of different types of VR experiences and how that case law similarly or dissimilarly apply to the protection of VR experiences. Part IV focuses on protecting VR experiences as a …


Government-Sponsored Patent Monetizing Entities, Garry A. Gabison Oct 2019

Government-Sponsored Patent Monetizing Entities, Garry A. Gabison

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

Government-sponsored patent assertion entities have materialized all over the world. This article looks at the market failure associated with the patent system. These entities have an opportunity to address these market inefficiencies. But, these entities can damage the innovation more by decreasing competition and increasing protectionism. This article looks at three such entities and argues that the US could use such an entity.


Making Room For Big Data: Web Scraping And An Affirmative Right To Access Publicly Available Information Online, Amber Zamora Oct 2019

Making Room For Big Data: Web Scraping And An Affirmative Right To Access Publicly Available Information Online, Amber Zamora

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This paper will explore the legality of web scraping through the lens of recent litigation between web scraper hiQ Labs and the online professional networking platform, LinkedIn. First, the paper will study the background of web scraping litigation, some challenges courts face in issuing consistent verdicts, and the most common claims companies make against web scrapers. Then the paper will address three of the most common claims and identify court motivations and limitations within the doctrines. The first claims are those arising from the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (CFAA). Next, the paper will investigate copyright claims and defenses …


Trends In Fashion Law: Striking The Proper Balance Between Protecting The Art Form And Sustaining A Thriving Online Market, Elisabeth Johnson Dec 2018

Trends In Fashion Law: Striking The Proper Balance Between Protecting The Art Form And Sustaining A Thriving Online Market, Elisabeth Johnson

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

No abstract provided.


Definite Indefiniteness Of "Molecular Weight" As A Claim Term For Polymer-Related Patents, Ping-Hsun Chen Mar 2018

Definite Indefiniteness Of "Molecular Weight" As A Claim Term For Polymer-Related Patents, Ping-Hsun Chen

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

The molecular weight of a polymer is not just a number for a single molecule. In fact, molecular weight measurement is based on a large volume of molecules of the same polymer. Due to the non-uniformity of molecular weights, there are several methods to measure an “average molecular weight” of a polymer. Unfortunately, the Federal Circuit in Teva Pharms. USA, Inc. v. Sandoz, Inc., 789 F.3d 1335 (Fed. Cir. 2015), held that the term “molecular weight” in several polymer claims was indefinite, because the term could mean either peak average molecular weight, number average molecular weight, or weight average molecular …


Consent Decrees In The Streaming Era: Digital Withdrawal, Fractional Licensing, And § 114(I), Steven J. Gagliano Jul 2017

Consent Decrees In The Streaming Era: Digital Withdrawal, Fractional Licensing, And § 114(I), Steven J. Gagliano

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

Clear disagreement exists about how best to reconcile the copyright protections afforded to songwriters with the antitrust considerations protecting consumers. Songwriter public performance royalty collections account for over $2 billion in annual U.S. revenue, roughly 90% of which is collected by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) and Broadcast Music, Inc. (BMI). ASCAP and BMI are performance rights organizations (PROs) regulated by seventy-five-year-old consent decrees. After the Second Circuit determined that these consent decrees prohibit music publishers from selectively withdrawing their new media rights from ASCAP and BMI to directly negotiating with new media services, the PROs …


Film Piracy: Surfing The Internet For Free Content Provides Little Bounty For The Collective Economy, Jordan Matthews Jul 2017

Film Piracy: Surfing The Internet For Free Content Provides Little Bounty For The Collective Economy, Jordan Matthews

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This Note focuses on the protection of a copyright holder against infringement in the form of film piracy. It centers on the recent litigation surrounding Dallas Buyers Club, a biographical film articulating the life and events surrounding an AIDS patient, diagnosed in the mid-1980s, who pursued experimental treatments by smuggling pharmaceuticals into the United States. In 2013, more than 4,700 Australian Internet users allegedly downloaded the film within the span of one month. In August of 2015, an Australian federal court declared that the studio behind the film would need to post a $600,000 bond before it could send letters …


Does The Mechanical License Provision Of The Copyright Act Violate The Copyright Clause?, Maryna Koberidze Jun 2016

Does The Mechanical License Provision Of The Copyright Act Violate The Copyright Clause?, Maryna Koberidze

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

No abstract provided.


Is Copyright Evolving Or Mutating? What American Broadcasting Cos. V. Aereo, Inc. Says About U.S. Copyright Law In The Twenty-First Century, Allison Davenport Jun 2016

Is Copyright Evolving Or Mutating? What American Broadcasting Cos. V. Aereo, Inc. Says About U.S. Copyright Law In The Twenty-First Century, Allison Davenport

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

In this article, I will look in-depth at the case of American Broadcasting Cos. v. Aereo, Inc. (Aereo). Aereo centers on an alleged infringement of American Broadcasting Company's (ABC)'s public performance right that was achieved through a complicated technological process meant to circumvent the law. In its opinion, the Supreme Court of the United States tries to stretch the language of the Copyright Act to apply to new technology by analogizing it with more familiar processes, while the dissent calls for reform to come from Congress, not the courts. Before my discussion of the Aereo decision, I will discuss the …


The Trademark As A Novel Innovation Index, Brian J. Focarino Apr 2016

The Trademark As A Novel Innovation Index, Brian J. Focarino

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

When studying the relationship that exists between entrepreneurship and intellectual property, patents receive the most scholarly attention. The attention makes sense when we consider that patents are closely associated with technical progress, grant temporary monopolies that incentivize investment in research & development (R&D), and function as vectors of technological dissemination in and of themselves. In a number of industries however, conventional forms of innovation often associated with patenting are minimal or missing altogether, and require us to look elsewhere to discern innovative behavior. This Essay highlights novel applications for trademark law to entrepreneurial activity in low-technology industries and low-financing locations …


Walk A Mile In The Shoes Of A Copyright Troll: Analyzing And Overcoming The Joinder Issue In Bittorrent Lawsuits, Kristina Unanyan Sep 2015

Walk A Mile In The Shoes Of A Copyright Troll: Analyzing And Overcoming The Joinder Issue In Bittorrent Lawsuits, Kristina Unanyan

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This Comment analyzes the issues surrounding joinder of copyright infringers who use BitTorrent, explores how joinder can be used and limited to create a more viable solution for copyright holders and consumers, as well as, supplements the sparse regulations that encompass joinder to create a rule that accommodates this technological era. Part II explains Copyright Law and the procedural aspects of a copyright infringement suit and joinder of defendants. Part III delves into the history of peer-to-peer (P2P) file-sharing lawsuits and provides an illustration of where case law rests today regarding P2P networks. Part IV describes the BitTorrent network and …


Note: A Series Of (Inseparable) Tubes? “New Media” Streaming And The Impact Of In Re. Pandora Media, Related Decisions, And Performance Licensing In The Internet Era, Ross Coker Sep 2015

Note: A Series Of (Inseparable) Tubes? “New Media” Streaming And The Impact Of In Re. Pandora Media, Related Decisions, And Performance Licensing In The Internet Era, Ross Coker

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

No abstract provided.


Shared Branding: Associated Use Of Trademarks And Trade Dress Through Shared Retail Space, Lanning Bryer, Scott Lebson, Francesca Montalvo Nov 2014

Shared Branding: Associated Use Of Trademarks And Trade Dress Through Shared Retail Space, Lanning Bryer, Scott Lebson, Francesca Montalvo

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This Article explores the increasingly popular marketing strategy of two or more unrelated companies offering their separate and distinct mono-branded goods and services in a shared commercial space--herein referred to as “shared branding.”


Is Internet Radio “Livin' On A Prayer”? With New Legislation, It “Will Make It, I Swear”, Kelsey Schulz Nov 2014

Is Internet Radio “Livin' On A Prayer”? With New Legislation, It “Will Make It, I Swear”, Kelsey Schulz

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This Comment discusses whether the IRFA would be the appropriate solution to the inequities in current copyright law as it pertains to digital music. Part I of this Comment will provide a more in-depth discussion of the history of copyright law and music distribution. It will examine the implications of the 1971 Sound Recording Act, the 1976 Copyright Act, and the Digital Performance Right in Sound Recordings Act of 1995. Part II will provide a critique of the current state of the law, including a look at the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 and its effects on the respective …


The Shield Act: A Good Attempt At Curbing Patent Trolls That Leaves Us Wanting More, Adina Sivaraman Nov 2014

The Shield Act: A Good Attempt At Curbing Patent Trolls That Leaves Us Wanting More, Adina Sivaraman

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This Comment explores the SHIELD Act in its entirety. Part II examines the historical background of the patent troll issue--focusing on former legislation and case law that sought to curb patent troll lawsuits. Part III discusses what the SHIELD Act is and what it aims to do. Part IV analyzes the positive and negative effects that the SHIELD Act would have if passed and takes a look at other options for limiting patent troll litigation, while ultimately contending that the SHIELD Act should be reformed to take a stronger stand against patent trolls by taking into account other proposed reforms. …


Whodunnit? Divided Patent Infringement In Light Of Akamai Technologies, Inc. V. Limelight Networks, Inc., Mark Tomlinson Nov 2014

Whodunnit? Divided Patent Infringement In Light Of Akamai Technologies, Inc. V. Limelight Networks, Inc., Mark Tomlinson

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This Note provides background information on divided patent infringement in the United States with emphasis on landmark cases and the previous understanding of the Patent Act. Part II provides background information on the underlying controversies and the software at issue in each case. Part III discusses the opinions of the factions of the court, and Part IV dissects the reasoning of each. Part V examines the implications of Akamai on businesses and other method patent holders while acknowledging that the future of the court's holding remains uncertain.


The End Of The Imitation Age?: The Effect Of Apple Inc. V. Samsung, Melissa Barcena Jan 2014

The End Of The Imitation Age?: The Effect Of Apple Inc. V. Samsung, Melissa Barcena

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

No abstract provided.


Following An International Copyright Regime At A Large National Cost: Is It Worth It?, Vaishali Khatri Jan 2014

Following An International Copyright Regime At A Large National Cost: Is It Worth It?, Vaishali Khatri

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

The main question at issue is which view of copyright law the United States should adhere to. Founders of American copyright law based our Constitution on utilitarian principles that promote the spread of knowledge and information to the general public. It has always been held that innovation and creativity were of core importance in an efficiently functioning democracy. With the passing of Section 514, the United States digressed from its national roots in order to comply with an international regime of copyright law. This decision in Golan takes steps to afford private economic benefit to a few copyright holders at …


Intellectual Property, The Free Movement Of Goods And Trade Restraint In The European Union, Jarrod Tudor Jan 2014

Intellectual Property, The Free Movement Of Goods And Trade Restraint In The European Union, Jarrod Tudor

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

The European Union (“EU”) is the most significant trade partner of the United States. Trading in goods protected by intellectual property rights remains a challenge for American business entities as they are forced to sift through a myriad of law consisting of the federal intellectual property law of the EU and the intellectual property law of the member states. The European Court of Justice (“ECJ” or “the Court”) has been faced with dozens of complex cases arising out of conflicts between the national law of the member states and the Articles of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European …


Modifying Rand Commitments To Better Price Patents In The Standards Setting Context, Kyle Rozema Jan 2014

Modifying Rand Commitments To Better Price Patents In The Standards Setting Context, Kyle Rozema

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

This Article addresses a single problem: how can we allow engineers and scientists from different institutions to collaborate to set the best technical standards possible, not considering intellectual property (“IP”) rights, and then establish the royalty rates for each patent owner after the standard is set? The current system attempting to solve this problem requires patent owner participants to sign a Reasonable and Non-Discriminatory (“RAND”) commitment. These RAND commitments require the participants to agree an ante, i.e., before the standard is actually set, to license whatever patent rights they may ultimately have in the standard on terms that are reasonable …


Is There Ever A Reason To Know? A Comparison Of The Contributory Liability "Knowledge" Standard For Websites Hosting Infringed Trademarked Content Versus Infringed Copyrighted Content, Rachel N. Agress Sep 2012

Is There Ever A Reason To Know? A Comparison Of The Contributory Liability "Knowledge" Standard For Websites Hosting Infringed Trademarked Content Versus Infringed Copyrighted Content, Rachel N. Agress

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

The doctrines of contributory copyright liability and contributory trademark liability are both based on the confluence of basic tort liability and the policy goal of encouraging innovation and commerce. Because the two concepts sometimes conflict, courts have struggled to create a comprehensive body of law to reach a reconciliation. The doctrine of contributory copyright liability evolved through a rich body of case law that was subsequently supplemented by the legislatively enacted Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). In contrast, the doctrine of contributory trademark liability is a purely common law doctrine and has not witnessed legislative intervention. This article posits that …


Printing The Impossible Triangle: The Copyright Implications Of Three-Dimensional Printing, Brian Rideout Sep 2012

Printing The Impossible Triangle: The Copyright Implications Of Three-Dimensional Printing, Brian Rideout

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

Three-dimensional printing (3D printing), which allows users to digitize and replicate objects, is emerging as the next potentially disruptive technology. It is now possible to “print” intricate objects from furniture to food to human organs. Because 3D printing relies on computer-based blueprints in order to create physical objects, digital copyright infringement can now impact the physical world. The first example occurred in February 2011, when the world's first Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) takedown notice for a 3D printed object was sent. This article describes how 3D printing works in relation to copyright law, first by discussing this DMCA takedown …


A New Look For The Fashion Industry: Redesigning Copyright Law With The Innovative Design Protection And Piracy Protection Act (Idpppa), Brittany West Sep 2012

A New Look For The Fashion Industry: Redesigning Copyright Law With The Innovative Design Protection And Piracy Protection Act (Idpppa), Brittany West

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

Introduced in Congress in August 2010, the Innovative Design Protection and Piracy Prevention Act (IDPPPA) would amend 17 U.S.C. § 1301 to extend copyright protection to unique, distinguishable, non-trivial, and non-utilitarian fashion designs. The fashion industry in the United States is currently a $200 billion industry which is afforded limited intellectual property protection compared to foreign markets. This article explores the applicability of the existing Copyright Act to fashion designs and argues that the IDPPPA takes a narrow approach to eliminate ambiguity present in former bills attempting to amend copyright law. The IDPPPA would incentivize innovation, the ultimate goal of …


Both A License And A Sale: How To Reconcile Self-Replicating Technology With Patent Exhaustion, Douglas Fretty Sep 2012

Both A License And A Sale: How To Reconcile Self-Replicating Technology With Patent Exhaustion, Douglas Fretty

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

Too many authorities view the transfer of patented self-replicating technology (SRT) as either a pure license or a pure sale. If a pure license exists, the patentee can impose post-transfer restrictions on the product's use, frustrating the policy goals of limited monopoly and free alienability of chattels. If a pure sale is triggered, however, the patentee loses all rights through patent exhaustion, allowing the purchaser to replicate the chattel at will. Sensitive to this latter argument, several courts have enforced Monsanto Company's “bag tag” seed licenses, which require Monsanto's farmer customers to destroy all second-generation seed. Urging a middle path, …


It Looks Like A Sale; It Quacks Like A Sale…But It's Not? An Argument For The Application Of The Duck Test In A Digital First Sale Doctrine, Matthew J. Turchyn Sep 2012

It Looks Like A Sale; It Quacks Like A Sale…But It's Not? An Argument For The Application Of The Duck Test In A Digital First Sale Doctrine, Matthew J. Turchyn

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

What are you purchasing when you buy a print of Picasso's Guernica? The piece of paper it is printed on, several courts have replied. In these instances, courts have created a pragmatic legal fiction that allows for the transfer of a copy of a work while the author retains his or her rights and privileges under copyright law. Therefore, the purchaser of the Guernica print could resell his or her legally created print of the painting on the secondary market. This is the essence of the First Sale Doctrine of the U.S. Copyright Act. This practice breaks down, however, when …


Measuring Intellectual Property 'Strength' And Effects: An Assessment Of Patent Scoring Systems And Causality, W. Lesser Sep 2012

Measuring Intellectual Property 'Strength' And Effects: An Assessment Of Patent Scoring Systems And Causality, W. Lesser

The Journal of Business, Entrepreneurship & the Law

No abstract provided.