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Other Barks & Bites, Friday, February 21: Federal Circuit Upholds Damages Limit for Failure to Mark, India Signs IP Accord with U.S. and Copyright Office Announces Fee Increases
This week in Other Barks & Bites: The CAFC issued a precedential decision in Arctic Cat Inc. v. Bombardier Recreational Products Inc., affirming a ruling that Arctic Cat …
Here’s Why the Pro-IP Crowd Is Right About Intellectual Property
On February 13, 2020, The Niskanen Center, a center-left think tank, published a piece condemning pro-intellectual property voices for what they consider flawed views on intellectual property. In the …
Anticompetitive or Hyper-Competitive? An Analysis of the FTC v. Qualcomm Oral Argument
On February 13, the Ninth Circuit heard oral argument in the FTC v. Qualcomm case. Counsel for Qualcomm and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) argued primarily about whether …
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Lessons of Wisdom Following Athena SCOTUS Denial and October 2019 Patent Eligibility Guidance Update
This article relates to key practice pointers for making a claim patent-eligible subject matter according to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s (USPTO’s) October 2019 …
European Commission Proposes Strategies for Data and AI
The European Commission is seeking feedback on its new strategy for data and has also launched a public consultation on a White Paper on Artificial Intelligence. Both …
Rethinking the Patent System: Five Ways to Make U.S. Patents a Real Investment Vehicle
The patent industry is in the doldrums. While the U.S. economy continues to endure historic, sustained growth, the stock market has skyrocketed, and new services, products, …
Bayh-Dole 40: Celebrating the Past, Protecting the Future
It's highly appropriate that the 40th anniversary of the Bayh-Dole Act occurs in a year as politically contentious as that in which it passed. In 1980, many predicted …
Booking.com Case Heats Up at Supreme Court
In November, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a petition for certiorari filed by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) asking the Court to consider “…
Time to Close the Gap: Is the PTAB Looking at Prosecution Histories in IPRs?
If a recent decision denying institution of an inter partes review (IPR) is any indicator, the answer to the titular question seems to be no, the Board …
Earth to Google: Here’s Why APIs Need to be Copyrightable
On January 6, 2020, Google submitted its brief in Google v. Oracle, kicking off the Supreme Court case that many are calling the “copyright case of the decade.” The …
This Week in Washington IP: Balancing Interests in Tech Exports, Predictive Analytics in Criminal Justice and Energy Storage Innovation
This week in Washington IP events, it’s quiet on Capitol Hill as both the House of Representatives and the Senate enter work periods for the week …
Six Years After Alice: 61.8% of U.S. Patents Issued in 2019 Were ‘Software-Related’—up 21.6% from 2018
As an update to my posts from 2017 and 2019, it has now been more than six years since the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2014 Alice Corp. v. CLS …
New USPTO Trademark Rules Seek to Streamline Filing and Crack Down on Fraud, But Could Increase Spam
New rules governing all trademark filings with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) went into effect two days ago, on February 15. Although the headline is …
WIPO and U.S. Copyright Office Team Up to Talk Copyright in the Age of AI
Earlier this month, the U.S. Copyright Office and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) held a joint event titled, “Copyright in the Age of Artificial Intelligence” (…
Why eBay v. MercExchange Should, But Won’t, Be Overruled
As anyone who follows the United States Supreme Court knows, the Court has historically been extremely fond of taking important cases with cutting edge issues, only to …
Identifying the Crucial Qualities of Great IP Managers
IPWatchdog readers know the importance of capturing IP, whether it is patents, trademarks, copyrights, or trade secrets. This article isn’t detailing technical tips for filing patents …
Other Barks & Bites for Friday, February 14: Federal Circuit Orders Case Against Google Out of Eastern Texas, DOJ Indicts Huawei on Trade Secrets, and USPTO Faces Backlash Over Email Address Requirement
This week in Other Barks & Bites: The Federal Circuit issues precedential decisions in patent cases involving data centers as “regular and established place of business,” the Section 315 …
Oracle Files Opening Brief at U.S. Supreme Court in Copyright Fight with Google
In the latest stage of the Supreme Court battle between Oracle America, Inc. (Oracle) and Google, Oracle filed its opening brief with the Court on February 12. Google’…
The Top Five Most Memorable Insurance Company Brand Personalities
As a branding and marketing professional, I really enjoy seeing how advertising has evolved over the years. Gone are the days of boring, ho-hum advertising campaigns. With …
The Year in Patents: The Top 10 Patent Stories of 2019
As we prepare to enter a new year—and a new decade—it is time once again to look back on the year behind us to assess …
IP Holds Lessons for Antitrust Law; No Monopoly on Patent Appeals the Way to Go
In November, the UIC John Marshall Law School held their 63rd Annual Intellectual Property Conference in Chicago, IL. The program consisted of four plenary sessions and nine …
The Most High-Profile Patents of 2019
With the end of 2019 upon us, the holiday season is a great time to take a look back at the most influential patents—rather than patent stories—…
The Top 10 Patent Stories of the Decade 2010 – 2019: Part I
This year, we wind down not only the year, but the decade. So, it is time to reflect upon the biggest patent related stories of the last …
The Most Iconic (and Patented) Toys and Games of All Time
Since America’s earliest days, many creative and innovative toys have come through the consumer marketplace. Many have become so iconic they are now household names and …
Agreement on USMCA Strikes Expanded Protections for Biologics
President Donald Trump and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have reportedly reached an agreement on the much debated United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), which would, if ratified, replace the …
RPX Corporation is Seeking to Hire a Senior Patent Engineer
RPX Corporation is seeking to hire a Senior Patent Engineer to join their Patent Analysis Department. The position is a full-time, permanent position, located in San Francisco …
The Top Five European IP Developments of 2019—and Five to Watch for 2020
As the year winds down, IPWatchdog is running a series of articles on the top stories of 2019 and what’s ahead for the year to come. In …
Christmas Gifts for Patent Attorneys and Inventors
Christmas is in just a few days, but if you're still looking for gifts for the patent attorneys, engineers, scientists or inventors in your life, here are …
The Top 10 Patent Stories of the Decade 2010 – 2019: Part II
As we explained in Part I of this series yesterday, this December marks the end of a decade as well as 2019. In reflecting on the top 10 patent …
USPTO, DOJ & NIST Issue Joint Policy Statement on Injunctions for Standard Essential Patents
Earlier this afternoon, the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and the U.S. Department of Justice, Antitrust Division (…
All Parties in Arthrex Want the Full Federal Circuit to Render a Better Decision
On December 16, the U.S. Government, Arthrex, Inc., and Smith & Nephew, Inc. each submitted petitions for rehearing and/or rehearing en banc asking the full Federal Circuit …
Other Barks & Bites for Friday, December 20: Inventor Rights Act Introduced, House Passes the USMCA, and Copyright Office Appoints Acting Register
This week in Other Barks & Bites: the Inventor Rights Act is introduced into the House of Representatives; House overwhelmingly passes USMCA; major tech companies lobby the European …
WIPO Prepares to Elect New Director General
There are 10 candidates declared to succeed Francis Gurry as WIPO Director General, when he retires in September this year after serving two six-year terms. One of them …
Registering your website with the Chinese government?
Doing business in China is exciting and potentially lucrative; however, there are “hidden” traps. Most of these hidden traps have been extensively discussed in the Western world – …
What happens when lifestyle drugs like Viagra and Cialis lose patent protections?
Each year, millions of men rely on pharmaceuticals like Viagra and Cialis for their erectile dysfunction (ED), but they may not be the only ones facing dysfunctionalities. …
The Myth of the 18-Month Delay in Publishing Patent Applications
Starting in November 2000, the USPTO started publishing patent applications 18 months after their earliest filing date. So the simple assumption is that you file a patent and 18 months …
Federal Circuit Affirms TTAB Refusal to Register ‘CHURRASCOS’
In a May 13, 2016 decision, the Federal Circuit affirmed a Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) decision upholding an Examiner’s denial of registration based on a finding …
Alternate Approaches to the Valuation of Intellectual Property
Techniques for valuing intellectual property continue to develop, especially as access to information becomes easier and more efficient. The practice of valuing intellectual property has only been …
Reflections on Taking the Patent Bar Exam
If you are reading this article beyond the title, you are either preparing to take the USPTO’s patent bar exam or you are considering whether you …
Top Patent Law Firms for 2017
We compiled a list of the top patent firms that are ranked based on the total number of U.S. utility patents that issued in 2017 where the …
Design Patent Infringement: How to decide if you should sue
First, look at the merits of the infringement claim. They may be stronger than you think, and you can thank a 2008 ruling for that. That year, the …
Top Patent Firms for 2016
A list of the top patent firms that are ranked based on the total number of U.S. utility patents that issued in 2016 where the patent firms …
Beat the Odds: How to Get Your Invention Licensed
Many inventors believe the way to get a company interested in their inventions is to write a letter – and then hope they receive an invitation to begin …
Does University Patent Licensing Pay Off?
Patent licensing or creating new companies is not a get rich quick path for schools despite the occasional blockbuster invention or Google spin-out. Indeed, enriching universities is …
These Are the 20 Hardest and Easiest Art Units
Art Unit 3689 has the lowest allowance rate at 7.7%. Art Unit 3659 has the highest at 98.3%. Oddly enough, these two art units are from the same technology center. It’…
Comic-Con Considerations: Cosplay, the Right of Publicity, and Copyright Concerns
For as much as Comic-Con is about comics, TV, and upcoming movies, it’s not hard to see that a large portion of its allure for fans …
Do Patents Truly Promote Innovation?
Invention, it has been shown, is driven primarily not by genius or happenstance but rather by markets and the expectation of the profit that can be gained …
10 Years Later – A Look at the Efficacy of the Pre-Appeal Brief Conference Program
For 61% of the non-defective requests, the panel decided that there was an actual issue for appeal, such that the applicant would either need to file an Appeal …
The Cost of Obtaining a Patent in the US
Estimating US patent costs is a difficult matter because so much depends on the technology involved, but answering "it depends" is not particularly insightful or helpful. What …
Protecting Ideas: Can Ideas Be Protected or Patented?
Unfortunately, despite what you may have heard from late night television, satellite radio commercials or snake oil salesmen, there is no effective way to protect an idea… …
Patent Searching 101: A Patent Search Tutorial
Inventors and entrepreneurs who are looking to cut costs frequently want to do their own patent search. This is a wise first move, but inventors need to …
The Top 5 Mistakes Inventors make with their Invention
Generally speaking the first step toward commercializing an invention and making money is typically to pursue the patent path. For those new to the industry it is …
Patent Claim Drafting 101: The Basics
When writing a claim it is important to describe how the various components are structured and how the various components interact and connect. First, include a claim …
Moving from Idea to Patent – When Do You Have an Invention?
In order to protect an idea it must mature into an invention first. This means that you need to be able to explain to others how to …
Tricks & Tips to Describe an Invention in a Patent Application
One excellent way to make sure you are including an appropriately detailed description that treats a variety of variations and alternatives is to have many professional patent …
Getting Your Invention to Market: Licensing vs. Manufacturing
Of course, whether you are going to pursue licensing or manufacturing, for the first lesson is to realize that there are no tricks to invention marketing. It …
Patent Drawings and Invention Illustrations, What do you Need?
If you are going to file a patent application you must have drawings to include in the application, but patent drawings are not the only type of "…
The Law of Recipes: Are Recipes Patentable?
In most cases the typical recipe for a "killer Margarita" or "the best barbeque sauce ever" will not be patentable, but the only way to know for …
Good, Bad & Ugly: Truth About Provisional Patent Applications
Whether that provisional patent application can ever be useful moving forward is unknown and unknowable at the time it is filed, which allows for those who knowingly …
Patent Drawings 101: The Way to Better Patent Applications
To properly accomplish the goal of having the best disclosure possible you should also not think in terms of a single patent drawing or illustration, but rather …
Utility Patent Applications – Content and Substance
In order to obtain a utility patent one must file what is referred to as a non-provisional application or a non-provisional utility application. It is called “non-provisional” …
When is an Invention Obvious?
That being said, the possibility that a utility patent could be obtained cannot be definitively ruled out even if an invention seems quite likely to be obvious, …
The Benefits of a Provisional Patent Application
Like any other patent application, a provisional patent application is effective to stop the clock relative to so-called statutory bars and immediately upon filing a provisional patent …
