Posts by Stephen B. Schott
Patent Law For The Lay Person: What Do The Words In A Patent Claim Mean?
An Article in Schott, P.C.’s IP Law For Start-ups Series Almost weekly, I have a conversation with someone who looks at a single patent drawing or abstract and asks me how someone could get a patent for “that.” I am happy to explain that the inventor didn’t get a patent for what’s in the abstract or…
Read MoreA Beautiful Mind Nobel Laureate’s Theory Is No Good For Calculating Patent Damages
Imagine you own several patents for software related to video calling over wireless networks. And further imagine that a mobile phone manufacturer uses a built-in program that you believe infringes your patents. The question that the Federal Circuit in VirnetX v. Cisco faced was: Is an infringing damages calculation based on the price of the entire phone,…
Read MoreThe Rise of the Startup Manufacturer
An Article in Schott, P.C.’s IP Law For Start-ups SeriesBy Stephen B. Schott “Some software startup founders are evolving into product startup founders. It’s an interesting trend.” A product startup founder said this to me over coffee a few months ago. Since then, I’ve been giving what he said some consideration. Has the time of the startup…
Read MorePatentable Subject Matter: The USPTO’s Guidelines after Alice
An Article in Schott, P.C.’s IP Law For Start-ups SeriesBy Stephen B. SchottAs promised when the Supreme Court issued Alice, the answer to the question “What is patentable?” will be developing over the next several years. But just a few weeks removed from the decision, the USPTO has issued the first of its guidelines for how it will deal…
Read MoreHow to Keep an Inventor’s Notebook
An Article in Schott, P.C.’s IP Law For Start-ups SeriesBy Stephen B. Schott An inventor’s notebook can be a breeding ground for your creative ideas. Capturing your ideas and improving on them over time in a single notebook lets you revisit older ideas or combine ideas as you solve a problem. And if you think of the…
Read MoreThe Supreme Court Rules On Public Performance And Copyright
Last week, the Supreme Court wrapped up a busy term for intellectual property cases. The latest and final IP case it decided was American Broadcasting Cos., Inc. v. Aereo, Inc. Aereo is a copyright case involving a copyright holder’s exclusive right to “perform the copyrighted work publicly.” In reviewing the technology at issue, a majority of the Court found that Aereo’s…
Read MoreTop Ten Most Important Trademark Cases
By Stephen B. Schott Patent attorneys appreciate patent law’s rigidity. Unlike many areas of the law, there are hard rules and unextendible deadlines. In some ways, this inflexibility reflects the personality of the scientists and engineers who benefit from it. But if patent law is predictable and rigid, trademark law is its antithesis: unpredictable and changeable. Its practitioners…
Read More“Hail to the…” Redskins Federal Trademarks Canceled as Disparaging
By Stephen B. Schott In a 2-1 split decision, the US Patent and Trademark Appeals Board canceled several trademarks owned by American football’s Washington Redskins today. The marks included: WASHINGTON REDSKINS, THE REDSKINS, several stylized variations of REDSKINS, and one mark whose commercial value seems dubious: THE REDSKINETTES.The Washington Redskins have been under increasing pressure from activists…
Read MoreTesla Donates Its Patents To The Public: “All Our Patent Are Belong To You
Yesterday, Tesla Motors announced that it “will not initiate patent lawsuits against anyone who, in good faith, wants to use our technology.” It removed all of its patents from its lobby in Palo Alto and says that “applying the open source philosophy to our patents will strengthen rather than diminish Tesla’s position in [the market].” Tesla titled…
Read MoreAdam Corolla Fights Patent Trolls But Anti-Troll Legislation Is Back Under The Bridge
Comedian and podcast host Adam Corolla recently visited Capitol Hill to complain about patent trolls. Discussing a patent infringement lawsuit targeting his podcast’s technology, Corolla stated “I’m just a small business … I understand wanting to protect your innovation, but this is run amok.” He also complained that in spending money to fight the litigation, he was losing out on…
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