People and businesses who make a habit out of pirating digital content often reason that it's a relatively victimless crime. But a new study has found that stealing intellectual property does have the potential to hurt people -- a lot of people. According to the...
Business Law Professionals
Intellectual Property
SOPA declared dead, but will there be a resurrection?
Not so very long ago, the protests against a piece of legislation designed to fight online piracy and protect intellectual property were at a deafening pitch. The U.S. House of Representative's Stop Online Privacy Act, which would have made it easier for government...
Filene’s “Running of the Brides” to go up for auction
Even if you haven't gotten married or planned a wedding in the last several years, you may be familiar with the annual "Running of the Brides" event put on by off-price retailer Filene's Basement. Although the company filed for bankruptcy in November and closed its...
Nike sues Adidas for using Tebow’s name on Jets clothing
A trademark battle is brewing between two major sporting goods companies over one of the most popular names in the NFL. Nike, which will soon become the official supplier of licensed NFL apparel, is suing Adidas' Reebok International for using quarterback Tim Tebow's...
Pin one up for copyright protection
The up-and-coming social networking site Pinterest has announced a new initiative to protect intellectual property from copyright infringement. The service, which is essentially a virtual bulletin board, allows members to post links, pictures and other information on...
Copyright piracy widespread among young people
A survey of attitudes toward intellectual property recently conducted by Columbia University in New York found that an astonishing 70 percent of all respondents in the 18- to 29-year-old age group admitted to having downloaded, copied or purchased movies, television...
Naming rights: When is identity considered intellectual property?
Most artists are well aware that it's illegal to copy the work of another artist and claim it as their own. But what are the limits when it comes to the identity of the artists themselves? Can two artists share the same name, or is what we call ourselves considered...
Food fight: Chef accused of plagiarism
A popular food television network fired one of its hosts after allegations of plagiarism began to swirl.The woman, who hosts a show on cable television's Food Network, was accused of stealing intellectual property belonging to other famed chefs. Producers for the...
Justice Dept. wants bigger intellectual property enforcement team
The U.S. Justice Department is asking to hire more prosecutors to pursue intellectual property crimes as the entertainment industry pressures it to crack down on copyright infringement and counterfeiting. Although Congress turned down the department's $3 million...
Think your baby’s name is popular? Check the patent office
What's in a name? Quite a fortune, if you're the child of a celebrity power couple. Within a month after music moguls Jay-Z and Beyonce announced the birth of their daughter, Blue Ivy Carter, they filed an application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to...