According to several media sources recording artist Prince (a.k.a., formerly known as The Artist Formerly Known As Prince) is prepared to sue YouTube (as well as eBay and Pirate Bay) for copyright infringement of his works. Prince is not alleging that Youtube is itself infringing on his copyright. Youtube only provides a forum for people […]
The events of early October, 2007 may herald a new age of respect for intellectual property (IP) rights. The first trial on peer to peer music file sharing pits the major record companies against a woman accused of copyright infringement, an act for which the U.S. Federal Court awarded a $220,000 judgment against her. The […]
For many years, the gold standard in word processing has been Microsoft’s Office software. Indeed, Microsoft Word is so entrenched as the word processing software of choice that its name has practically become synonymous with its function - as Kleenex has with facial tissue. But I.B.M., arguably Microsoft’s biggest contender for computer-related supremacy, is gearing […]
Several months ago, web giant Google unveiled the latest feature of their popular mapping website, Google Maps. Street View allows users to get a panoramic view of selected locations around major cities in the United States. Now it’s being suggested that Canada is next on the list for this feature, and there is controversy brewing. […]
The concept is simple, a recent Toronto Star article explains: `By the end of 2009, if all goes according to plan, paper cheques won't be cleared any more. Instead, electronic images will be transmitted from one financial institution to another.’ Standing in the way of this bankers’ dream, however, is the American firm DataTreasury […]
Aristotle once said "that which is common to the greatest number has the least care bestowed upon it." This idea has subsequently evolved into the modern concept of Tragedy of the Commons (or not quite modern - the term in fact dates back to an 1833 study of medieval land holdings). The concept itself is […]
Cross border transactions are a hot topic in today’s legal community. However, picture a very different type of border and a very different type of transaction. The dispute is real, the border vague, and the substance is, well, virtual. On May 1, 2006 Marc Bragg, a Pennsylvania lawyer, launched an action against Linden Labs Research […]
The United States’ liberal approach to extending patent protection is best illustrated by the court in the Diamond v. Diehr case, where it states “anything under the sun that is made by man” is patentable as an invention. As Professor David Vaver opines in his text Intellectual Property Law: Copyright, Patents, Trademarks, the US courts’ […]
Warner Music Group’s recent announcement about wider losses in the third quarter, due to an increasing trend of consumers switching to digital downloads, highlights the changing nature of the music industry. Even as Warner posted higher overall losses due largely to the decline in CD sales, its digital revenues were up 29% from the […]
In an attempt to control the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Thailand, the Thai government decided to bypass the patents on anti-retroviral drugs (ARVs) by issuing compulsory licenses to manufacture generic copies of these drugs. The result of this gutsy move is affordable, locally-made alternatives that are dispensed to patients for free via the government's universal healthcare […]