Intellectual Property
Intellectual Property
TRADEMARK NEWS: Jury sides with Hermès over ‘MetaBirkin’ NFT creator
In a major victory for trademark owners, digital artist loses bid to cast his MetaBirkin tokens as protected expression. In a closely watched case testing the ability of trademark owners to police their brands in the exploding virtual marketplace rep...
A squabble over the songs of KC & and The Sunshine Band is quickly tossed. A former member of a prominent 1970s musical group was precluded by the statute of limitations from asserting a claim of ownership over the band’s musical compositions, the fe...
The widower alleged the radio show included comments by a psychic who claimed his wife’s suicide was actually a homicide. The federal district court in Seattle has granted a media company’s motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by an individual who claim...
The asserted claims were directed to the abstract idea of social networking based on personal attributes. A patentee’s complaint against two online dating services failed to state a claim, the U.S. District Court in Wilmington has held. The asserted ...
In a case of first impression, the Eighth Circuit adopts the rule that allegations based on “information and belief” may be sufficient where the defendant has sole control of key facts. In a case in which a heavy equipment rental company alleged a co...
The famous basketball team asserts that the forthcoming film about a former player uses its intellectual property without authorization and will cause irreparable harm to the brand’s goodwill. On February 6, 2023, Harlem Globetrotters International, ...
Intellectual Property
COPYRIGHT NEWS—Getty Images takes aim at Stability AI in new infringement lawsuit
The prominent photo agency claims that the software developer scraped millions of its images in order to train its system. Stability AI, the creator of a software interface capable of generating digital content using artificial intelligence did so by...
In case you missed the in-depth intellectual property law coverage in the January 2023 issues of IP Law Daily , here are highlights of the month’s most notable developments. Among the most important court decisions in IP cases last month, the Federal...
The patents were directed to the abstract idea of automated social networking, or matchmaking. A federal court in Delaware has dismissed a patent infringement lawsuit, which claimed the operators of several popular online dating apps infringed on pat...
The similarity of the services offered, namely websites providing information, videos, and classes on fitness, nutrition, and wellness, weighed heavily in favor of likelihood of confusion. The mark GYM RATS ONLY and its related design mark would like...
There was no genuine issue of fact that the marks of two wine makers were distinct in appearance. In an opposition proceeding over the registration of a word and design mark for wine made from grapes from the Provence region, the applicant’s and oppo...
The complaint only asserted claims for violation of Texas common law trademark rights. The federal district court in Houston has granted a Texas physician’s request to remand to sate court a trademark infringement suit she brought against a competing...
Intellectual Property
TRADEMARK—9th Cir.: GoDaddy qualifies for domain registrar immunity under anti-cybersquatting law
GoDaddy found not liable for third-party use of domain name previously held by a nonprofit organization. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has affirmed the dismissal of a lawsuit filed by a motivational speaker against GoDaddy accusing ...
However, certain claims of one asserted patent were invalid as a matter of law for lack of written description. Summary judgment was not appropriate in a dispute over whether personal hydrofoil watercraft manufacturer Waydoo USA infringed two patents...
In construing the DTSA, district courts have found that plaintiffs are not required to identify trade secret information in detail in order to avoid dismissal at the 12(b)(6) stage. The federal district court for the District of Columbia has allowed ...
The ruling is the latest in protracted litigation over ownership of the mark METALAST. In a dispute spanning several years over rights in the trademark METALAST, the federal district court in Reno, Nevada, has ruled that Chemeon Surface Technology, L...
A federal jury will have to decide whether the maker of the digital token was protected by the First Amendment. A Manhattan jury will soon decide whether the maker of a digital token based on a line of Hermès handbags should be liable for infringing ...
The 2022 report examines the adverse impact of online piracy on U.S. workers who produce creative digital works. The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on January 31, 2023, released the findings of its 2022 Review of Notorious Ma...
Intellectual Property
TRADEMARK—TTAB: Refusal to register Lizzo’s mark reversed
Board finds that consumers associate the phrase with Lizzo and her song, “Truth Hurts,” even though it originated as an internet meme. The Trademark Trial and Appeal Board in a decision designated as precedential has reversed an Examining Attorney’s ...
Substantial evidence supported the PTAB’s findings on the issues of motivation to combine and reasonable expectation of success. A Patent Trial and Appeal Board decision finding challenged claims of a patent directed at aerodynamic skirts for reducin...
A $6 million treble royalty damages award in favor of Sunoco was reinstated because, outside of a factual error identified by the Federal Circuit, there was ample evidence of bad faith on the part of U.S. Venture. Sunoco Marketing & Terminals L.P. re...
On remand from the appeals court, the district court concluded the complaint fails to plausibly allege trademark infringement of the dissimilar “Midcap Business Credit” mark. The federal district court in New York City has concluded that financial se...
Over the air broadcasters have long paid music publishers, but not artists and their labels. Radio broadcasters and the companies that own them have been getting a free ride for far too long under a longtime provision of the Copyright Act, a bipartis...
A periodic roundup of other items of interest to the Intellectual Property community. PATENT—Fed. Cir.: The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has dismissed for lack of appellate jurisdiction a patent owner’s appeal of a California distric...
Intellectual Property
NBCUniversal sufficiently alleged two merchandise sellers infringed DUNDER MIFFLER and other marks from television shows The Office and Friday Night Lights. In refusing to dismiss a lawsuit brought against an alleged trademark squatter, the federal d...
An artist can pursue secondary copyright infringement claims against the deceased mother’s estate, but her state law claims were dismissed as preempted. An artist can proceed with claims that the mother of an individual alleged to have created and so...
The plant was on public display more than a year before the application was filed. A seed company’s patent application claiming a particular variety of plant was properly rejected for being anticipated by prior public use because the variety had been...
The week’s most insightful, intriguing, or entertaining blog posts regarding intellectual property issues. Director’s Blog, USPTO’s Trademark Public Advisory Committee: Where we’ve been and where we’re headed , by David Cho, Chair of the USPTO’s Trad...
The 1980s star alleges that a rapper mimicked his distinctive voice in a recent chart-topping hit. A breakout young rapper hired a singer to imitate the voice of 1980s pop star Rick Astley in his latest smash hit song, a new lawsuit asserts. The comp...
The organizers previously lost a bid to register MOECHELLA with the USPTO due to confusion with the plaintiff’s marks. Coachella Music Festival, LLC and Goldenvoice, LLC, producers of the COACHELLA and CHELLA music festivals, have filed a trademark i...