Are Patents on Interfaces Impeding Interoperability?

Pamela Samuelson is the Richard M. Sherman ‘74 Distinguished Professor of Law and Information at the University of California at Berkeley and is a member of IP Osgoode's International Advisory Council. Many commentators and policymakers have expressed serious concerns about the exclusionary potency of patents on communications protocols and interface designs for information and communications […]

Potential of US Copyright Agenda to Endanger Freedom of Expression in China

One of the most prevalent criticisms leveled against China today is the lack of human rights afforded to its citizens.  This is particularly so in the area of civil and political rights, where China’s single-party unitary rule has made political prisoners of pro-democracy activists.  Western advocacy groups have applied political pressure to convince the Chinese […]

Doctrine of First Sale in Our Digital World

On March 26, 2009, the Queen held a reception for leaders attending the G-20 summit. President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle were the first dignitaries to meet the Queen. During their private meeting, President Obama and the first lady presented the Queen with a gift. The gift was a personalized iPod - complete with […]

Cybersquatting: One Too Many

A recent cyber-squatting dispute sheds light on the fact that although avenues for resolutions exist, cybersquatting is still a major problem plaguing internet commerce today. It all started when US media giant Viacom, decided to move material about its TV show 'Jackass' to the domain name 'jackass.com',  but realized that a serial cybersquatter based in the Virgin Islands (owned […]

Patent Infringement Remedies: Is a Nonexclusive License Worth Less?

Although a patent is typically seen as a right to exclude others, the willingness of American courts to automatically provide that right through a permanent or preliminary injunction has been affected by the Supreme Court of the United States in Ebay v. MercExchange (547 U.S. 388 (2006)).  In a recent article, Prof. Richard Epstein argues […]

Picture This: Consent and Control over Your Image

ViVien Hoang is a first year law student at Osgoode Hall and is taking the Legal Values: Challenges in Intellectual Property course. Aubry v. Editions Vice-Versa, [1998] 1 S.C.R. 591 altered the legal landscape in which photographers were operating in Quebec.  Aubry distinguishes Canadian public photography laws from American ones; the contrast is evident when […]

What is the expectation of privacy online?

Kevin Osborne is a first year law student at Osgoode Hall and is taking the Legal Values: Challenges in Intellectual Property course When you give your email address to a website, do you expect that site to offer it to anyone who asks for it? How much privacy do you expect? A recent case heard […]

Graduated Response Systems

James Gannon is an Osgoode Hall alumnus and is currently an articling student at McCarthy Tétrault. Much attention has recently been paid to proposed legislation that would require Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to step up their efforts to prevent subscribers from downloading copyright-protected content through the Internet connections they provide. These initiatives are often described […]

Three Strikes and Out: New Zealand Copyright Law Developments

Susan Corbett is a Senior Lecturer in Commercial Law, Victoria University of Wellington In response to a barrage of criticism, unprecedented in response to a topic as alien to the average kiwi as copyright law, New Zealand Prime Minister John Key has announced that section 92A of the Copyright Act 1994 will not come into force […]

Lowered expectations of privacy

In a recent opinion piece at wired.com, Bruce Schneier criticizes the “expectation of privacy” test that is used to interpret the fourth amendment of the United States. He notes that this test is dangerous, because “the whole ‘expectations’ test is circular -- what the government does affects what the government can do”. The American constitution […]