So Google, at the behest of the European Union, is compiling what could be the largest personal database the world has ever seen. Does this sound a little Orwellian to anyone? The privacy implications of Google’s actions should concern just about every user of the search engine and internet. As rightly pointed out by activist […]
The move to criminalize identity theft comes amid pressing calls to modernize current privacy laws that have be made irrelevant by rapidly evolving technologies. Identity theft, that is the unauthorized gathering, possessing of or dealing in identity information, is not caught by the existing Criminal Code. While several activities integral to the unauthorized use of […]
In response to a request from the Vancouver Organizing Committee (VANOC) for additional trademark legislation related specifically to the Olympic and Paralympic 2010 Winter Games, the Canadian government proposed Bill C-47, The Olympic and Paralympic Marks Act, which received Royal Assent on June 22, 2007 and is now awaiting its coming into force by the […]
Second Life, as it is aptly named, is a virtual world. Through online personas, known as avatars, users of Second Life interact with each other as well as with the virtual items that they create. Users reap rewards for their creative efforts by retaining and exploiting intellectual property (`IP’) rights in their creations; the result […]
Vonage has been the target of substantial patent infringement litigation in recent months. One of their ongoing disputes has been with Verizon, a competitor in the internet phone business. Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit released its decision in Vonage’s appeal. At first glance, it may appear Vonage was the more […]
Paris Hilton has filed a federal lawsuit over a U.S. $2.49 Hallmark greeting card that uses a photograph of the heiress and her trademarked phrase "That's Hot." Ms. Hilton is seeking at least U.S. $500,000 in actual damages and a permanent injunction barring Hallmark from further exploitation of her name and likeness. Although this case […]
Thailand is at war, with battles taking place on several fronts. Over 600,000 people in Thailand are infected with HIV and the government is fighting the epidemic by administering HIV treatment and medication through its universal healthcare system. But HIV drugs are costly. In order to provide its people with the necessary medication, Thailand has […]
The first thing that strikes me about this article is that the term “patent troll” carries many different meanings. The definition of patent troll suggested in the article “Rise of the Patent Trolls” by Joe Beyers[1] is “a company or business function whose primary business activity is to acquire patents for the purpose of offensively […]
Since the advent of the Internet in the early 1990s, domain name registration has provided a constant source of dispute. On the one hand, you have people who are merrily registering domain names of their choosing; on the other hand, you have trademark holders who are frowning at the fact that their most obvious domain […]
Over the years, judicial and legislative efforts have dramatically changed the face of US patent law. Traditionally, the United States prescribed to a patent law regime which was territorial in nature, meaning that in order for a finding of infringement to be made, the infraction had to occur wholly within the United States. The recent […]