Features

USPTO Looking to Beef Up Its Own Trademark Protection
The agency announced that the Department of Commerce has applied to register the USPTO's marks in a bid to crack down on scammers who are impersonating the agency.
Features

New Report Finds Declines In Copyright, Trademark Suits
Copyright lawsuit filings declined significantly over the last two years, according to a new report by Lex Machina, which found that overall cases had dipped from a 2018 peak that was driven primarily by surges in file-sharing litigation.
Features

Counterfeiting vs. Infringement: Second Circuit Weighs In
In two recent cases, the Second Circuit provided guidance as to the circumstances that may give rise to liability for counterfeiting, as distinct from mere infringement, and addressed liability for contributory infringement for counterfeiting.
Features

Not Your Property, Your Business: When Customized Products Become the Business of Rights Holders and Courts
In some instances the appearance of third-party intellectual property on items purchased, owned and customized by the purchaser may be legal under the doctrines of first sale and fair use.
Features

New COVID Relief Bill Brings Changes to Trademark and Copyright Practice
The new, more than 5,000-page spending bill, which includes the latest COVID-19 relief, had a few surprises under its cover. Two of those surprises focus directly on intellectual property and amount to sea changes in the trademark and copyright infringement realms.
Features

Unseating Inelegant Notions of Product Design Functionality
In Blumenthal Distributing, Inc. v. Herman Miller, Inc., the 9th Circuit considered whether or not the or not the best-selling piece of furniture ever is functional.
Features

Global Perspective On Filing Trademark Registrations
The entertainment industry is a global business, but many U.S. brand owners do not realize that their valuable trademark rights stop at the U.S. border.
Features

Deciphering the USPTO's Material Alteration Standard for Amending Marks
As brands mature over time, their owners often seek to update marks that are subject to a federal registration or registration application. In some cases, the impetus for the amendment may be deliberately to freshen, tweak, or otherwise modernize the subject mark. In other cases, brand owners may recognize after the fact that their current usage of a mark does not match the mark as originally registered or applied for.
Features

Testing for Genericness After USPTO v. Booking.com
In the recent U.S. Supreme Court case of USPTO v. Booking.com, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the term Booking.com is not necessarily generic merely because it is composed of two components, each itself generic. In so deciding, Justice Ginsburg averred that there is an appropriate metric to determine if such a term is indeed generic, that of consumer perception.
Features

Methods for Trademark Valuations
Valuations of trademarks, such as those in the entertainment industry, are most commonly performed in relation to a sale or licensing transaction or for lending and collateral purposes.
Need Help?
- Prefer an IP authenticated environment? Request a transition or call 800-756-8993.
- Need other assistance? email Customer Service or call 1-877-256-2472.
MOST POPULAR STORIES
- The Article 8 Opt InThe Article 8 opt-in election adds an additional layer of complexity to the already labyrinthine rules governing perfection of security interests under the UCC. A lender that is unaware of the nuances created by the opt in (may find its security interest vulnerable to being primed by another party that has taken steps to perfect in a superior manner under the circumstances.Read More ›
- Warehouse Liability: Know Before You Stow!As consumers continue to shift purchasing and consumption habits in the aftermath of the pandemic, manufacturers are increasingly reliant on third-party logistics and warehousing to ensure their products timely reach the market.Read More ›
- Litigating Redesigns At the ITCAn overview of redesigns at the ITC, a discussion of the ITC's recent determination in Certain Audio Players and Controllers, and identifies some considerations to keep in mind when litigating redesigns at the ITC.Read More ›
- Applying Merger By Deed Doctrine to Real Estate TransactionsSince a deed is a subsequent writing between the parties, there is some logic to the terms of the deed taking precedence over the terms of the prior contract of sale, at least as to the subject matter of the deed.Read More ›