December 27, 2016
Companies spend a considerable amount of time exploring ways in which intellectual property laws can help protect and exploit their assets. Invariably, they look to trademark and patent laws to serve their needs, while copyrights remain an underutilized means for securing business assets. Copyright issues are especially relevant for companies ... Read More »
by: USLAW
November 29, 2016
In what circumstances does the unauthorised posting of a hyperlink run the risk of infringing copyright? The question is an important one, for hyperlinks help the internet to work smoothly; and it is also a topical one, for it was the subject of a recent ruling by the Court of ... Read More »
by: Wedlake Bell
November 9, 2016
J. K. Rowling’s world of Harry Potter included an array of amazing artifacts; our personal favorites were the books and pictures that changed themselves. Two decades later, a world of Kindles and iPads echoes the wonders of Potter. Now imagine that Rowling’s world included a magic ledger. Every human had ... Read More »
by: USLAW
November 8, 2016
When is design protected? And when do products look too much alike? These are the questions that have come up in the De Poortere/By-Boo case. De Poortere and By-Boo both sell carpets. De Poortere argues that By-Boo infringes its intellectual property rights with regard to two carpets, and demands this ... Read More »
November 4, 2016
Does one infringe trademarks by using printing on garments? That is the question that has come up in the dispute between Jeans Centre and H&M, in which the District Court of Amsterdam recently ruled. The Jeans Centre retail organisation is holder of the CHIEF verbal trademark, registered for garments. H&M ... Read More »
October 19, 2016
At the dawn of portable electronic devices, they were primarily work-related productivity tools. Often, employers would purchase (or lease) devices and distribute them to their need-to-have employee base. It’s not so long ago that we can remember when the Blackberry transitioned from a business device to a consumer device. Everybody ... Read More »
by: USLAW
October 5, 2016
Pokémon Go is one of the first augmented reality games to achieve widespread popularity. That popularity has exacerbated minor problems that have blossomed into serious issues on the larger scale. A comparison between Pokémon Go and its predecessor, Ingress, provides an example of how augmented reality on a large scale ... Read More »
by: USLAW
August 10, 2016
When showing video clips or screenshots from video clips, don’t rely on the face-to-face teaching exemption if you have reason to believe the copy you’re using was made without the copyright owner’s permission. Treat works created outside the U.S. the same way you treat works created inside the U.S.—get permission ... Read More »
by: USLAW
August 5, 2016
On May 11, 2016, President Obama signed a new law that creates a federal cause of action for misappropriation of trade secrets. The Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (“DTSA”) places trade secrets on more even footing with other types of intellectual property, including copyrights, patents, and trademarks, and allows ... Read More »
by: USLAW
August 1, 2016
Just because it is your name DOES NOT guarantee that you can secure a trademark registration for your name. The popular race car driver known as Dale Earnhardt died in 2001. During his career, he clearly established trademark rights in his name for goods/services related to automobile racing. He also ... Read More »
by: USLAW
July 15, 2016
The trademarks McMuffin, McRib, McFlurry, Chicken McNuggets, McChicken and Egg McMuffin, all derived from the McDonald’s brand, meet all of the conditions to form a ’family’ of trademarks according to the General Court of the European Union. All derived trademarks are connected by a common feature, namely the prefix ‘Mc’. ... Read More »
June 15, 2016
The financial pressure on hospitals is increasing. Health insurers are becoming ever more critical of hospital expenses and also want to have more of a say on the content and quality of the care provision. Hospitals wish to continue to offer good care and for this they require access to ... Read More »
June 9, 2016
Since January, under certain conditions, substantial penalties can be imposed for breaching the Personal Data Protection Act [Wet bescherming persoonsgegevens (Wbp)]. The duty to report data breaches has also been in force since that time. This means that existing processor’s agreements had to/must be amended. Some people are now however ... Read More »
June 8, 2016
On 4 May 2016, the final text of the privacy regulation was published in the Official Journal of the European Union. Article 99 of the regulation determines that it comes into force on 25 May 2018. This means that in two years time an extensive set of rules must be ... Read More »
June 6, 2016
On 11 May 2016 the District Court in The Hague ruled that, under certain circumstances, a social network such as Facebook is under a legal duty to (among other things) provide the name and address details of users if such users post harmful and unlawful information. Social media users often ... Read More »
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