Alt Legal IP News – Issue #115
Justin Wickersham | November 20, 2018
Wild Wild Web
– Facebook’s new patent suggests the company may take ad targeting to a creepy new level.
– YouTube’s CEO has been outspoken against the EU’s efforts to revise its copyright directive. IMPALA, an indie label trade group, is pushing back in favor of the revisions.
– Check out this primer on the rise and legality of search engine advertising.
Magic Formulas
– Pfizer lost a long-running patent battle to extend rights in a pain medication with worth $5 billion a year.
– Tattoo and makeup artists don’t fit neatly into the art world or copyright law.
– A new lawsuit by L’Oreal may change the dupe culture of the beauty industry.
What Do You Think?
– If Mozart and Beethoven were alive today, would they be guilty of copyright infringement?
– Are food and beverage companies ready for the influx of cannabis-related patent filings?
– Are quilts protected by copyright?
Odds and Ends
– Last week, an EU court ruled that the taste of a food product is not a work and thus not protectable by copyright.
– Ford has a plan for eliminating the new car smell: baking the car.
– An Arizona couple ran a website that offered free downloads of classic video games. They now owe Nintendo over $12 million.
– Will one Supreme Court case create an escape from another?
– A new TTAB ruling emphasizes the value of understanding the most important portion of a trademark.