Here at Cloudigy, we enjoy chocolate trademark stories. So we wanted to share a heartwarming story about several recent chocolate trademark litigations in Europe. Swiss chocolate maker Lindt cares a lot about chocolate bunnies that are wrapped in gold foil and sport red neck ribbons. After all, these bunnies come from an old chocolate-making tradition. [...]
Copyright is a set of exclusive rights granted to the author or the creator of an original work. Those rights include the right to copy, distribute, and adapt the protected work. There have been debates raging in Congress, on the Internet, on social media, and across the world about the proper scope of copyright protection—debates [...]
Big Changes Under the AIA This month, some major changes to the U.S. patent laws will go into effect. These provisions enacted in the America Invents Act (AIA) change the U.S. patent system from a “first-to-invent” system (unique among IP systems) to a “first-inventor-to-file” system. All patent applications filed on or after March 16, 2013, [...]
As you may have noticed from my earlier posts, I just can’t stop talking about chocolate. So it’s a good thing that there’s a healthy supply of chocolate-related trademark cases to talk about! Candy Bar Shape Trademark: No-Function Junction First up, you may remember my summary of the Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) hearing [...]
Chances are, at some point, your company may purchase, develop, or customize software that it will use to run the business or support clients. For example, the software could relate to business and accounting management functions including human resources, customer, or supply chain management and monitoring. Many large companies such as Microsoft Corp., SAP America, [...]
Before Computers Ruled the World Once upon a time, businesses stored trade secrets and other proprietary information in locked file cabinets. In the old ink-on-paper days, it was relatively easy to safeguard proprietary information. A limited number of people had keys to the file cabinets. Of course, it was possible to steal the information from [...]
Looking Back at 2012 As we head into December each year, I always feel introspective. What has our firm accomplished this year? What can we do better next year? Has Cloudigy Law made a positive impact on our community, the lives of our team members, our friends, and our clients? This is when we look [...]
On Sunday, December 9, 2012, EmeraldPlanet’s Inside Scoop Sunday aired a panel of IP experts discussing IP issues, specific to “green” companies. This program was simulcast to over 500 stations around the U.S. and overseas via the Internet and C-SPAN. A panel of experts, including Cloudigy Law’s own Antigone Peyton, covered IP issues encountered by [...]
Several months ago, I blogged about an order allowing a trademark dispute concerning “Village People” marks to be appealed to the Federal Circuit. Here’s how the appeal turned out. Karen I. Willis v. Can’t Stop Productions, Inc., No. 2012-1109 (Fed. Cir. Nov. 13, 2012) (Judges Prost, Moore, and O’Malley) (per curiam) (nonprecedential) Karen Willis is [...]
I wanted to take this opportunity to share a teachable moment from the world of trademark law. Apple hit a big hitch in its effort to control and protect its brand in Mexico because it was late to the trademark party. A Mexican telecom company registered “iFone”—a trademark that the Mexican court determined is confusing [...]
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