The Supreme Court’s unanimous ruling in Mayo v. Prometheus was announced yesterday. In the 9-0 unanimous ruling the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that “[L]aws of nature, natural phenomena, and abstract ideas” are not patentable subject matter under §101 of the Patent Act,” citing to Diamond v. Diehr, 450 U. S. 175, 185. “[A]n application of Read more about Unpatentable Natural Phenomena[…]
Summary of Key Provisions and associated Effective Dates On September 16, 2011, President Obama Signed the Patent Reform Act of 2011, (also referred to as AIA or the American Invents Act) into law. The Act made the most significant changes in US patent law since the 1952 Patent Act. The stated purpose was that the Read more about American Invents Act[…]
The recent buzz across the internet yesterday was the equivalent of a 21st century “Sit In” as websites and internet users demonstrated against SOPA and PIPA. SOPA stands for Stop Online Piracy Act, which is related to the recently (October 26, 2011) proposed legislation [H.R. 3261] introduced by the Lamar S. Smith (R-TX) who was Read more about SOPA/PIPA and WIKI – the new “SIT IN”[…]
Hasbro, the famous toy maker, has filed a trademark infringement suit against computer maker, Asus over the use of the “Transformer” mark. Asus, the maker of iPad tablet type of computers, unveiled the new “Eee Pad Transformer,” an Android-based tablet that can convert to a notebook via a docking station. Last month, Asus expanded their Read more about The Next Transformers Battle[…]
Google continues to buy more patents from IBM, in fact it appears that Google has bought another 188 U.S. patents and 29 patent applications from IBM. Some speculate that Google has been buying patents from IBM and others to help it defend its Android software from the challenges involving Apple’s iPhone. Google’s largest deal so Read more about Google continues to acquire patents from IBM[…]
The U.S. House of Representatives introduced new legislation, the Stop Online Piracy Act, today which is supported by the RIAA. The bill is designed to provide the Department of Justice with resources to prevent offshore “rogue” sites from offering access to illicit and counterfeit goods. A a hearing on the Stop Online Piracy Act will Read more about RIAA SUPPORTS NEW ANTI-PIRACY BILL[…]
Late last week the United States Senate voted 89 to 9 to send House Bill H.R. 1249 (titled “the America Invents Act”) to President Obama’s desk. The Senate voted overwhelmingly to approve the same version of the bill that the House of Representatives previously passed. Having received the blessings of both houses of the 112th Read more about 2011 Patent Reform (AIA)[…]
The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (“ICANN”) is registering a new top-level domain xxx, despite numerous objections from various groups. Some believe that the creation of the .xxx top-level domain (TLD) will effectively create an official internet ‘red-light district’ while others hope that this will help get the pornographic websites off of the Read more about New Registration for .xxx Domain Names[…]
Speaking of Social commerce, did you know that one in 10 UK pets has a profile on Facebook, Twitter or YouTube. Many within the U.S. have also set up a profile for their pet. Although, it is hard to determine how many pets are signed up on Facebook, it appears that at least several thousand Read more about Social Paws or Arrested Pa’s?[…]
Protecting Intellectual Property in Social Commerce The Internet and e-commerce are becoming the standard mode of business in today’s global economy. The current projection is that e-commerce in 2011 will account for 188 billion dollars with a hundred billion dollars in growth being projected by 2015 as a result of mobile commerce, social commerce and Read more about Facebook Pirates?[…]