After years of debate (almost 15, to be precise) and numerous revisions and cancellations (4, to be precise), Bill C-11 or An Act to Amend the Copyright Act, arguably the most controversial set of changes to the Canadian Copyright Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. C-42), has just been passed by a vote of 158 to 135. […]
The Intellectual Property Institute of Canada (IPIC) and IP Osgoode are delighted to announce our 2012 Canadian writing challenge in intellectual property law. We are pleased to be running our third annual writing challenge. Our goal is to further enhance thoughtful and well-researched intellectual property public policy scholarship and discussion. We encourage a broad range […]
In the past few years, policymakers, academic commentators, consumer advocates, civil liberties groups, and user communities have expressed grave concerns about the steadily increasing levels of enforcement of intellectual property rights. Many of these concerns relate to the “alphabet soup” of transborder intellectual property enforcement, which consists of the following: SECURE (Standards to Be Employed […]
On May 10th, 2012 Dish network (hereafter “DISH”) announced that it would be adding a new feature named “AutoHop” to their digital video recorder (the Hopper). The feature would allow viewers to automatically skip over advertisements in the shows that they record. Large TV networks such as Fox, CBS and NBC have called the feature […]
Life in a Glass House, ABC’s forthcoming reality show that is noticeably reminiscent of CBS’ Big Brother, is poised to air in a number of weeks, irrespective of the vigorous legal efforts on the behalf of CBS to suppress its release.
Zut alors! Christian Louboutin is not having a good year with the judicial system and must be seeing red! I have previously covered Christian Louboutin’s dispute with Yves Saint Laurent in the US, with respect to YSL’s use of the red-soled shoes. Christian Louboutin suffered a blow when he was denied a preliminary injunction […]
Starting this Friday, June 15th at Old Osgoode Hall, a new two-day symposium attempts to bring attention to the burgeoning issue of criminality in the art and cultural property world. Organized by Czegledi Art Law, a firm focused on international art and cultural heritage law, the symposium is the first of its kind for Canada. […]
The trademark dispute over the “iPad” name rages on in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) between Shenzhen Proview Technology and Apple Inc. However, the Cupertino-based producer of the ever popular iPod, iPhone, and of course the iPad won’t let its legal issues in China get in the way of the brand’s overall expansion into […]
In 2007, Pepsico (“Pepsi”), makers of its namesake fizzy drink did their competitors, The Coca Cola Company (“Coke”) a good turn, by turning in two Coke employees who tried to sell its secret recipe to Pepsi. This decision on Pepsi’s part can be read as a mixture of sound business acumen, legal sense and some […]
In an effort to draw a line in the sand in the smartphone market, an “innocent bystander” has been caught in the legal crossfire. Following a successful sales ban of the Xbox 360 in Germany, Motorola set its sights on the gaming console’s home turf, and currently, things are not looking good for Microsoft in […]