Archive for March 2015
Should You Follow the Advice of this Start-up if Approached with a Demand Letter by a So-Called ‘Patent Troll’?
Tech Crunch published an interesting commentary today written by Chris Hulls, Chief Executive Officer of Life360, in which Mr. Hulls shares his story of taking on a patent troll and urges other start-ups to do the same. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Life360 patent case, Ars Technica recently published an article…
Read MoreCopyright Reform on the Table in Congress: Songwriter Equity Act of 2015 Introduced in the House of Representatives
Copyright reform is on the table again in Congress. A bill to amend the Copyright Act has just been introduced: the Songwriter Equity Act of 2015. The text of the bill is available at the attached link. Surprisingly, the bill was introduced by Rep. Doug Collins from the 9th District of Georgia. While the Atlanta…
Read MoreLessons from the Copyright Infringement Verdict Against Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams
A verdict was reached earlier this week in the copyright infringement case between Robin Thicke and Pharrell Williams and the children of Marvin Gaye, finding that the 2013 song “Blurred Lines” infringed on the copyright in Marvin Gaye’s 1977 song “Got to Give it Up.” Tech Times reported that Gaye’s children have been awarded $4…
Read MorePitfalls in Negotiating and Drafting Exclusive Licensing Deals: Lessons from Macy’s Dispute with JcPenney’s Over its Martha Stewart Product Line
When a new client contacts me for assistance in negotiating a licensing deal, the client almost always informs me that the deal is going to be an exclusive licensing arrangement. However, when I engage the client further to tell me more about the proposed exclusivity deal, in most cases the proposed terms on the table…
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