Although copyright issues have consumed the spotlight when it comes to Google Books, a recent thread has suggested that this feature may be of great use when it comes to patent prosecution.
More specifically, the suggestion has been that Google Books has potential to become useful for prior art searching undertaken during preparation of a patent application.  [...]

Posted in Electronic Processes, Patentability, Patents
Comments: 0

Ann Bartow is a Professor of Law at the University of South Carolina School of Law.
One of the cases that always troubled me when I taught Trademark Law was Qualitex v. Jacobson Products Co., in which the U.S. Supreme Court concluded that colors alone could constitute protectable trademarks.  Colors could always be protected as part of [...]

Posted in Trademarks
Comment: 1

Chris Castle is Managing Partner of Christian L. Castle Attorneys, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
As Kate Lacey correctly notes in her post, the Google Books settlement creates what is essentially a single purpose private compulsory licensing regime benefiting only Google-assuming the settlement is approved at the upcoming fairness hearing for which the filing deadline [...]

Posted in Contracts, Copyright, Technology
Comments: 0

Ticket Scalping is getting a lot of attention in Canada lately. In Ontario, Premier Dalton McGuinty made headlines by threatening to introduce legislation to stem TicketMaster’s practice of diverting potential purchasers to its resell site TicketsNow. In Saskatchewan, the Ministry of Justice and the Attorney General recently released (Warning: PDF Link)a discussion paper concerning ‘Ticket [...]

Posted in Official Marks, Trademarks
Comment: 1