A Few Useful Holiday Inventions
One principal requirement for obtaining a utility patent is that the invention be useful. “Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or...
View ArticleThey Invented What? (No. 244)
U.S. Patent N0. 6,053,798: Structural improvement of toy Christmas tree. JW Note: Wishing a Happy Holidays to all! See you in 2016! For more holiday TIW? from years past, click here. What is claimed...
View ArticleHateful Eight, Joy, other Oscar contenders leak before theatrical run
If you keep tabs on the Internet's largest depositories for pirated music, films, and TV series, you're used to an annual deluge of major films appearing in illicit fashion a month or so before the...
View ArticlePresident Obama Signs Law that Changes the Visa Waiver Program
On December 18, 2015, President Obama signed the 2016 Consolidated Appropriations Act (H.R. 2029) (the “Law”) which not only funded the government through September 30, 2016, but also made several...
View ArticleUSPTO Online and IT Systems shut down on 22 Dec. 2015 due to power outage
Donald Zuhn at Patent Docs reported the problem in a post titled Major Power Outage Causes Shutdown of USPTO Online and IT Systems -- USPTO to Consider December 22-24 to be "Federal Holidays".The...
View ArticleGoogle Play Defeats Lawsuit Over Unauthorized Bank Charges–Harvey v. Google
Photo credit: “Check the bank statement and balance the account” // ShutterStockIn March 2013, Susan Harvey bought a game via Google Play, which required her to electronically link her bank account....
View ArticleBREAKING: Santa's General Counsel in shock resignation
Holly Night, Santa's GC, willnow finally be able to enjoythe holidays (including thefestive twinkle lights), without the ongoing threat of litigationLast minute shopping, lacklustre Christmas lunches,...
View ArticleChristmas Kissing Creativity: Mistletoe Innovations
I thought it might be interesting to take a look at one of more fun holiday traditions — kissing under mistletoe. According to History.com, mistletoe is a symbolic herb that has been used in one form...
View ArticleChristmas Kissing Creativity: Mistletoe Innovations
I thought it might be interesting to take a look at one of more fun holiday traditions — kissing under mistletoe. According to History.com, mistletoe is a symbolic herb that has been used in one form...
View ArticleUSPTO Restores Fax Line -- UPDATED
By Donald Zuhn -- The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office announced this morning that it has now restored its fax line and is once again able to receive faxed documents. The announcement was made on the...
View ArticleUniversity of Iowa Hiring an In-House IP Attorney
By Jason Rantanen I’m excited to report that my academic institution, the University of Iowa, is hiring an in-house intellectual property attorney. The University of Iowa is a major public research...
View ArticleUS Patent and Trademark Office Encourages Video Conferencing with Patent...
The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is encouraging patent attorneys to conduct interviews with patent examiners to advance patent applications during patent prosecution. The USPTO published a...
View ArticleApple wants a $180 million Christmas present from Samsung, seeks supplemental...
While Apple is usually the net payer when it comes to patents (most recently vis-à-vis Ericsson), it has received $548 million from Samsung this month, though a reimbursement may be demanded later....
View ArticleAttorney-Client Confidentiality vs. Attorney-Client Privilege
“Attorney-client confidentiality” and “attorney-client privilege” are terms that non-lawyers frequently mistake for one another or misuse. This post explains the difference between those terms. While...
View ArticleCreepy Online Tracking Companies Fizzle in the Face of Privacy Badger: 2015...
2015 has been a momentous year for Privacy Badger and EFF’s Do Not Track policy. This year saw the launch of Privacy Badger 1.0, which now has more than 600,000 daily users. It also saw the launch of...
View ArticleTalking the Slants talk
@TTABlog This was the result of the best of intentions executed by fine professionals trying to divine their duties in a world gone mad. — Ron Coleman (@RonColeman) December 24, 2015 You might want to...
View ArticleWe Threw a Wrench in the White House's TPP Fast Track Plan: 2015 in Review
Our campaign to fight the anti-user Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement was a rollercoaster this year. Our mobilization against the Fast Track trade bill resulted in some major twists and turns...
View ArticleIt’s Christmas Eve: Internet systems at patent offices in U.S.A. and...
Christmas Eve 2015: Why are the Internet services at the government patent offices in both the United States and Australia shut down right now? Did you heed last month’s book release by Ted Koppel:...
View ArticleSeason's Greetings from Patent Docs
The authors and contributors of Patent Docs wish their readers and families a Happy Holidays.
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