Intellectual Property Law Commons^™

Electronic Billboards Along The Information Superhighway: Liability Under The Lanham Act For Using Trademarks To Key Internet Banner Ads, Christine Galbraith Davik

Faculty Publications

With almost one billion web pages on the Internet today, a search engine is a necessity at times. But search engines are also for-profit ventures and the financial success of these sites hinges on advertising revenue. One of the ways in which these sites generate income is by selling “keywords” to advertisers. Although there has been only one judicial decision – Playboy Enterprises, Inc. v. Netscape Communications – involving banner ads keyed to trademarks, it will undoubtedly not be the last. This article argues that despite the invisible nature of this unauthorized trademark use, the common practice of keying a …

Sweeping The E-Commerce Patent Minefield: The Need For A Workable Business Method Exception, William Krause

Seattle University Law Review

This Comment will trace the history of patent protection for methods of doing business over the past two decades, then it will inspect the problems that this protection has wrought: litigation, increased barriers to e-commerce entrepreneurs, and the threat of a less vibrant electronic marketplace. Because each traditional method of protecting intellectual property -- patent, copyright, and trade secret -- has strengths and limitations in protecting advancements in software technology, this Comment will examine the relative benefits of each method. Finally, this Comment will suggest a simple, easily applied test that will offer patent protection to true innovations while reserving …

The Public Choice Of Choice Of Law In Software Transactions: Jurisdictional Competition And The Dim Prospects For Uniformity, Edward J. Janger

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Computer Law Institute, Office Of Continuing Legal Education At The University Of Kentucky College Of Law, Charles R. Keeton, Jay E. Ingle, J. Mark Grundy, Robert F. Duncan, Kenneth J. Tuggle, Joel T. Beres, Bill E. Webb, Stephen J. Davidson, Cynthia L. Stewart, Judge B. Wilson Ii, David J. Beyer, Kurt X. Metzmeier, Shaun E. Esposito

Continuing Legal Education Materials

Materials from the Computer Law Institute held by UK/CLE in May 1999.

Budweiser Or Budweiser, 32 J. Marshall L. Rev. 1251 (1999), Jitka Smith

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Legal Aspects Of International Transfer Of Technology, Anna Mikhailovna Otkina

LLM Theses and Essays

For any international law practitioner issues relating to technology and proprietary information can arise in a number of a different situation. For example, transactions involving foreign distribution and sales rights relating to domestic products are a common part of the day-to-day practice of anyone engaged in the multinational business arena. Many of those transactions involve a contractual agreement in the form of a license, which is intended to transfer to the licensee the technology and related information, and the legal rights therewith, necessary to complete successfully the objective of the transaction: the distribution and sale of the domestic product at …

Privately Legislated Intellectual Property Rights: Reconciling Freedom Of Contract With Public Good Uses Of Information, J.H. Reichman, Jonathan A. Franklin

Librarians' Articles

In an age of omnipresent clickwrap licenses, we acknowledge the need for a uniform set of default rules that would validate non-negotiable licenses as a mechanism for minimizing transaction costs likely to hinder economic development in a networked environment. However, we contend that any model of contract formation not driven by the traditional norms of mutual assent requires specially formulated doctrinal tools to avoid undermining long-established public good uses of information for such purposes as education and research, technical innovation, free speech, and the preservation of free competition.

With the convergence of digital and telecommunications technologies, creators and innovators who …

Secured Credit And Software Financing, Ronald J. Mann

Faculty Scholarship

Software is a relatively new type of business asset, but already has taken on a central role in all sectors of the economy; when any asset brings such a crucial value to businesses, the desire for lending based on that asset cannot be far behind. Unfortunately, the existing academic literature contains no sustained examination of software-related lending.

Because the software industry is in its infancy, the existing empirical evidence is inadequate to support any understanding of it. Accordingly, I undertook a series of twenty-nine informal interviews with industry participants, including lenders in both the Massachusetts Route 128 corridor and Silicon …

The Unpredictable Scope Of The Waiver Resulting From The Advice-Of-Counsel Defense To Willful Patent Infringement, Jared S. Goff

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

Signposts To Oblivion? Meta-Tags Signal The Judiciary To Stop Commercial Internet Regulation And Yield To The Electronic Marketplace, Craig K. Weaver

Seattle University Law Review

The focus of this Comment is not merely to analyze the role of the judiciary in Meta-Tag litigation specifically, but also to use Meta- Tags as a lens with which to examine the potential effect of judicial activism on Internet commerce in general. The first portion of this analysis focuses on the applicability of federal trademark infringement and dilution laws in Meta-Tag abuse suits. The next portion of the article evaluates why market regulation of Meta-Tag abuse is the correct course of action, in the short-term, for ensuring the growth of electronic commerce. The article concludes with a description of …

1997 Business Law Institute: Advising Your Business Client, Oregon Law Institute, Robert K. Winger, Steven C. Alberty, Nancy J. Brown, Sylvia E. Stevens, Andrea Bartoloni, Tifani M. Parrilli, James L. Knoll, Beth R. Skillern, Linda M. Bolduan, Gary W. Glisson, David P. Peterson

Oregon Law Institute, 1997

Course Materials from the May 2, 1997 Program in Portland

How Modern Treatment Of 35 U.S.C. § 112(6) Has Caused Confusion: Hilton Davis V. Warner-Jenkinson And The Right To A Jury On The Issue Of Patent Infringement Under The "Equitable" Doctrine Of Equivalents, David R. Todd

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

Photographer's Rights: Case For Sufficient Originality Test In Copyright Law, 30 J. Marshall L. Rev. 149 (1996), Patricia L. Baade

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

If It Walks Like A Duck: A Proposal To Unify U.S. Customs' Treatment Of Infringing Imports, 29 J. Marshall L. Rev. 711 (1996), Keith M. Stolte

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Single Publication Rule: One Action Not One Law, Debra R. Cohen

Journal Articles

Recovery in one action under one state's law for violation of the right of publicity-the right to control the commercial use of one's identity-arising out of multistate publication2 seems to be the trend of the nineties. When Samsung ran a nationwide print advertisement for VCRs depicting a robot dressed to resemble her, Vanna White sued for violation of her right of publicity.3 Under California law she recovered $403,000. 4 When a SalsaRio Doritos radio commercial imitating Tom Waits's distinctive raspy and gravelly voice aired nationwide, he sued Frito Lay for violation of his right of publicity.5 Under California law he …

An Analysis Of The Nature And Impact Of Legal Complexities Facing United States Corporations Considering Investment Into The New South Africa, Philip R. Mcdougall

LLM Theses and Essays

Due to sanctions imposed against South Africa’s Apartheid government, the South African economy suffered as little international investment was made in the country. With these sanctions lifted following the democratic elections of 1994, South Africa is now an alluring country for international investment. Despite this attractiveness, U.S. corporations face many legal concerns before entering the South African economy. An analysis of these issues is made in the context of American and South African law with solutions proposed in an effort to avoid deterring foreign investment. These concerns include political and non-economic risks that often hinder investment in the African continent, …

Intellectual Property And The Costs Of Commercial Exchange: A Review Essay, Robert P. Merges

Michigan Law Review

A Review of The Commercial Law of Intellectual Property by Peter A. Alces and Harold F. See

China On The Horizon: Exploring Current Legal Issues, 28 J. Marshall L. Rev. 639 (1995), Preston M. Torbert

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Will The Copyright Office Be Obsolete In The Twenty-First Century?, Pamela Samuelson

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

An Employer's Guide To Protecting Trade Secrets From Employee Misappropriation, Derek P. Martin

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

Legislative Process And Commercial Law: Lessons From The Copyright Act Of 1976 And The Uniform Commercial Code, Harold R. Weinberg, William J. Woodward Jr.

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

Overlap and conflict are inevitable in any legal system in which a federal government and state governments both have authority to enact laws. In our federal system, the Constitution's Supremacy Clause identifies federal law as preeminent in case of conflict. When conflict develops and litigation is required to determine whether state or federal law controls the issue at hand, our system analyzes the problem using the term preemption as a basis for analysis.

This Article explores the federal legislative process that precedes judicial preemption decisions. By studying the legislative process for its sensitivity to preemption issues, possible ways to modify …

Perfection Of Security Interests In Copyrights: The Peregrine Effect On The Orion Pictures Plan Of Reorganization, Steven Weinberger

Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Developments In Trademark And Unfair Competition Law: In The Courts, The Patent And Trademark Office And Before The Trademark And Appeal Board, 24 J. Marshall L. Rev. 1 (1990), Raymond I. Geraldson Jr., Mark V.B. Partridge, Joseph N. Welch

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

Easing Transfer And Security Interest Transactions In Intellectual Property: An Agenda For Reform, Harold R. Weinberg, William J. Woodward Jr.

Law Faculty Scholarly Articles

Uncertainty and confusion probably always have existed bout the employment of intellectual property as collateral for a loan. Since the drafting of Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code, an uneasy coexistence of state and federal law has developed. Both state and federal law now arguably apply when a debtor attempts to use a patent or trademark to secure a loan. The extent to which each body of law is applicable and the interaction between the two systems was left unclear by the drafters of Article 9 and has not been clarified by Congress. The radical differences between the state …

Book Review Of Passion: An Essay On Personality , Richard F. Devlin Frsc

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

Passion is a cogently structured, compel Jingly argued and seductively enthralling masterpiece which, in years to come, will undoubtedly stand out as an inspirational source for many who seek social transformation. Unger's style, in this essay at least, is lucid and inviting. Substantively, Passion demonstrates not only the depth of his penetrating intellect but also his command of an array of' disciplines. Unger's polymathy is all the more impressive when we remember that ours is an era in which idiosyncratic specialization is the norm.

Dowling V. United States, Lewis F. Powell, Jr.

Supreme Court Case Files

No abstract provided.

Why Copyright Law Should Not Protect Advertising, Douglas O. Linder, James W. Howard

Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Trademark Protection: Judicial Inconsistency In The Fifth Circuit, Julius R. Lunsford Jr., William R. Cohrs

Mercer Law Review

Plaintiff-appellant has had the misfortune ... to come before a panel of this Court allergic to the doctrine historically associated with us because of its nurture by our most illustrious judges . . . of protecting trade names [trademarks] against competition which will create confusion as to the source of goods sold under such names. The chance of the assignment calendar which has so operated against plaintiff might as easily have brought it success, to judge by the three most recent cases on this issue before us, the unanimous decision in each instance. . . of another panel. ... This …

The Value Of Territorial And Field-Of-Use Restrictions In The International Licensing Of Unpatented Know-How: An Empirical Study, Joel A. Bleeke, James A. Rahl

Northwestern Journal of International Law & Business

Data concerning the international transfer of technology, particularly in the area of unpatented know-how, are relatively scarce. In this article, Mr. Bleeke and Professor Rahl present the results of one of the first empirical studies conducted in this field. The study, in which signifcant information was gathered from United States corporate licensing attorneys and executives, is focused upon the extent to which territorial and field-of-use restrictions are necessary to facilitate the international transfer of unpatented know-how. The results provide a clearer picturefor both policy makers and practitioners in the field.

China's Joint Venture Law: A Preliminary Analysis, Preston M. Torbert

Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law

China's Joint Venture Law is an impressive step towards modernizing the Chinese economy with the help of Western managerial and technical help. It is, however, unclear and incomplete in several respects. In assessing the nature of the Joint Venture Law as it presently stands and in forecasting the changes that will be made, it is helpful to look both to the experiences of Romania and Yugoslavia as well as to China's own experience with compensation trade and joint state-private enterprises. Not only are these prior experiences valuable from an analytical point of view, but they are also useful as practical …