BLW 342 Chapter 15

Tangible Property

Property with physical existence.

Intangible Property

Property that does not have physical existence, such as patents, copyrights, and trademarks, but carries full protection of ownership.

Patent

A legal monopoly over inventions, products, and processes for a statutory time period.

What are the requirements for an idea to be patentable?

An idea must be nonobvious, novel, useful, and must be reduced to some tangible form.

Utility Patent

Patents for machines, processes, and improvements to existing devices - 20 years.

Design Patent

Protects features of products - 15 years.

Plant Patent

For those who develop new forms of plants and hybrids - 20 years.

Copyright

An exclusive right to sell, control, or license words, thoughts, ideas, and music.

What is protected under copyright?

Authors of books, magazine articles, plays, movies, songs, dances, recordings, architectural designs, broadcasts, photographs, and computer programs.

Copyright Duration for Creators

Life of the creator plus 70 years.

Copyright Duration for Businesses

120 years from creation or 95 years from publication.

Rights of Copyright Holders

Control over reproduction, distribution, public performances, derivative works, and public displays.

Penalties for Copyright Infringement

Profits made by the infringer, actual costs, attorney fees, and any other expenses associated with the infringement action.

Fair Use

An occasional and spontaneous use of copyrighted materials for limited purposes.

Questions to determine fair use

Is the use for commercial or nonprofit/educational use?

Is the work large or small or a song, poem, or book?

What is the effect of the use on the copyrighted work?

Trademark

Words, names, symbols, designs, or devices that businesses use to identify their products or services.

Lanham Act

A federal law passed to afford businesses protection for their trademarks.

Trade Name

An official name under which a company functions.

Trade Dress

The colors, designs, and shapes associated with a product.

Cyber Infringement

Unauthorized use of trademarks over the internet.

Cybersquatting

Registering names as internet domains in hope of reselling them at a profit.

Product Disparagement

Defamation for products/businesses, where the statement must be untrue.

Palming Off

A company sells its product by leading buyers to believe it's another product; must establish that confusion is likely.

Misappropriation

The use of another’s ideas or trade secrets for benefit, requiring theft, espionage, or bribery to obtain the secret.