Alt Legal IP News – Issue #229
Bri Van Til | March 03, 2021
Tech It Easy
The Federal Circuit ruled that a patent for software plus hardware was not infringed by technology that’s just software.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit ruled that terms with inconsistent definitions (terms like “computer”) were indefinite, making patent claims about them invalid.
The USPTO is using machine learning technology to speed up patent classifications.
If you ever represent tech clients, make sure to join us next week for our CLE webinar, “Open Source: The trademark awakens,” where Mitesh Patel will explain how and why to obtain trademark protection for open-source and copyleft projects.
Vaccine Vexation
The African Union and the Holy See have both called for easing or waiving IP rights for COVID-19 drugs.
However, the US has blocked a proposal to waive for IP protections for coronavirus vaccines.
Some are arguing that reducing the IP protections won’t make the vaccines come any faster.
Others say that even if the WTO waived IP rights, that still might not be enough to get everyone vaccinated or eradicate the disease.
Social Media
About a week after banning Australian news on its platform, Facebook has agreed to pay the news industry $1 billion.
TikTok’s parent company is joining the LOT Network in the hopes of avoiding patent trolls.
Weintraub Tobin recommends caution when embedding social media content.
Facebook is suing Namecheap, a domain registry, for alleged trademark infringement and cyber squatting.
Professional Concerns
If you’re an IP Master(card), consider applying to be a senior legal services specialist for this company.
Maybe you should be an IP attorney for this company if you want to DISH out some Cease and Desist letters.
Has your career hit a Wal(mart)? Consider being a trademark attorney for this retailer.
This might be the Michael Best firm in which to serve as patent counsel.
Think you’re Smartsheet? Apply to be corporate counsel here.
Serving as marketing counsel for Anheuser-Busch could be beery interesting.
Have an open role on your team? Send a link to your job listing to [email protected], and we’ll publish it in our next newsletter.
Odds and Ends
Is consideration of a state statute of limitations relevant to evaluating a laches defense to Lanham Act claims?
The US Copyright Office has issued a new rule allowing group registration for music albums.
Ethics are important. Read all about USPTO ethics requirements. For more information, check out this recorded session from last year’s Alt Legal Connect.
In case you missed last week’s fantastic webinar where Ed Timberlake offered suggestions for conducting advanced TESS searches, make sure to watch the recording.