Alt Legal IP News – Issue # 157
Bri Van Til | September 24, 2019
Who Knows Huawei They’ll Go?
– Last week, Huawei announced that it was considering selling its 5G patents to a Western buyer, but was that a bluff? Either way, will the technology transfer ban hurt U.S. companies?
– Hauwei recently submitted an EUIPO trademark application for “Harmony Studio,” projected to be a developer portal to help the company compete with Android. Is the trademark application a “defiant message to Google and Trump”?
– A recent patent granted to Huawei is for technology that would detect signs of road rage and perhaps cause the car to decelerate or brake if drivers are angry.
On the Road Again
– An ongoing legal battle between street artists and Mercedes may have larger implications for protection of street art.
– Kawasaki’s recent patent application for a new steering mechanism for a motorcycle has fans wondering if it’s the new Batmobile.
– Toyota’s recent patent reveals it’s engineering AI “nanny” software that would assess an inexperienced driver’s skills and take over when deficits are detected.
CannaBIZ
– The varied legality of cannabis and cannabis-derived products has made cannabis IP complicated, but McCarter & English attorneys offer suggestion for how to protect cannabis trademarks.
– Charlotte’s Web, a high-CBD strain of cannabis, recently became the first cannabis strain to successfully obtain patent protection with the USPTO.
– Brooks Kushman attorney Dustin Zak argues that recent developments in hemp agriculture and business opportunities now make the plant a “viable advanced material.”
Odds and Ends
– Updates: Led Zeppelin is going back to court about claims of copyright infringement, and the STRONGER Patents Act seems to be gaining traction.
– The nonprofit Software Freedom Conservancy recently issued a statement to the USPTO urging them to reconsider requiring applicants to submit personal addresses, saying the requirement could threaten individuals’ personal safety.
– On the Odds side, Chuck Yeager is suing Airbus for mentioning him in their ads, and Aftechmobile is suing Apple for infringing their 2018 patent with its Shortcuts app, first released in 2014.
– Starting next month, the USPTO is tightening security for TEAS applications.