Posts Archive
How to Protect the Copyright of My Web Content
Copyright is important in all forms of media because it provides legal ownership over the work someone produces. This allows the author, artist, etc. control over how …
Trademarks Create Valuable Assets
Earlier this month Activision filed a trademark registration for “Guitar Hero Modern Hits.” Guitar Hero is the massively popular video game that allows you to try and …
What is a patent and where do patent rights come from?
A patent is a proprietary right granted by the Federal government pursuant to laws passed by Congress. The Congressional power to authorize patents is found in Article …
Contracts 101: Covenants, Representations and Warranties in IP License Agreements
Recently, it has struck me that many business folks who “negotiate tons of IP license agreements,” fail to understand the difference between covenants, representations and warranties that …
A Brief History of Google’s Android Operating System
In October 2003, a group of young computing experts came together to establish a software development company that would go on to revolutionize the cellular mobile phone as …
Register of Copyrights Testifies on Copyright Office Modernization, Streaming Piracy and Music Modernization Act Implementation
On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Intellectual Property convened an oversight hearing of the U.S. Copyright Office featuring testimony from Karyn Temple, the …
Moving from Idea to Patent: When Do You Have an Invention?
When you are moving from idea to invention to patent, regardless of how or why you find yourself stuck in the idea phase, the first order of …
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 …
Patenting Board Games 101
In my experience one of the things that inventors of board games frequently forget is the inclusion of alternative methods of play. Don't just focus on the …
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 …
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 …
Does My Degree Qualify Me to Take the Patent Bar?
Some of the most popular pages month after month on IPWatchdog.com are our Patent Bar information pages, and given that I teach for the PLI Patent …
How Long Does a Patent Last?
Generally speaking, utility and plant patent applications filed on or after June 8, 1995, have a term that begins on the date the patent issues and ends on the …
Patent Drafting for Beginners: The anatomy of a patent claim
First, every patent claim needs a preamble, which is the introductory phrase in a claim... Second, every patent claim needs a transition. The most common transitions are: “…
Drafting Patent Applications: Writing Method Claims
Method or process claims are relatively easy to write once you know what the core invention is and what is necessary to be included in the claim …
