Did you know that many of the food products you see on the shelf at the grocery store are patented?
Utility patents are granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) for useful “inventions” that are new and nonobvious. The owner of a utility patent has the right to exclude others from making, selling, offering to sell, using, or importing the patented invention for a set period of time—usually around 17 years.
Startups and Their (Non)Obvious Patents Many products and services we use every day are inventions from startups that were innovative, new, and exciting at the time they were created. For example, many of us now use, and take for granted, Uber for transportation or Square to easily pay with credit cards at restaurants or stores. While these companies’ platforms might be obvious to us now, … Continue reading Startups and Their (Non)Obvious Patents
Trader Joe’s: A Long Grocery List of Trademarks
Trader Joe’s is an undeniably popular grocery store chain.
It operates over 500 locations in the United States across 42 states and Washington, D.C., with estimated annual sales that reach $16.5 billion.
I’m a fanatical patron myself. I love its funky, mom-and-pop aesthetic and products that I can’t seem to get elsewhere like Everything But the Bagel seasoning (Trader Joe’s owns the trademark for that). The chain has achieved wide success with its “cult-like” customer base
Continue reading “Checking Out Trader Joe’s Tote Bag Trademark Battle”
Dumb Starbucks or Smart Starbucks? Brewing Up Effective Parodies
Years before I started law school, I enjoyed indulging in the work of a comedian named Nathan Fielder, a master of absurdist comedy. Never did I realize this would be one of my first encounters with the many principles of trademark law. On his show, Nathan for You, he acts as a “consultant” helping real people with their real businesses. However, Nathan’s version of “help” only included absurd and unrealistic ideas, such as the concept of “Dumb Starbucks.”
Continue reading “Dumb Starbucks or Smart Starbucks? Brewing Up Effective Parodies”
In October of 1985, a heroic plumber named Mario journeyed through a kingdom of peaceful mushroom people to save a kidnapped princess from the hands of the evil, fire-breathing tyrant.
Thirty-eight years later, Mario once again journeyed through a kingdom of peaceful mushroom people, this time with the help of the princess to save his kidnapped brother from the hands of an evil, fire-breathing tyrant. However, rather than watching Mario’s adventure through a TV and a video game console, the beloved character now embarked on an adventure on the big screen.
Continue reading “The Rainbow Road to Nostalgia and Copyrights”
Dragons, White Walkers and AI, oh my!
If you are a big Game of Thrones or fanfiction lover, buckle up! From one (legal) battlefront to the other, OpenAI has been under fire recently for the development of their artificial intelligence (AI) computer program ChatGPT. The Authors Guild and 17 individual authors (“Authors”), including “Game of Thrones” novelist George R.R. Martin, filed a lawsuit in September 2023, against Open AI for copyright infringement.
But before we dive into that, let’s cover the basics of ChatGPT.
Continue reading “Winter is Coming for OpenAI: What Constitutes Fair Use by ChatGPT?”
With winter (or Abuelita season) approaching, Chocolate Abuelita (a classic Mexican hot chocolate) is at the top of many Mexican minds. However, this time, the thought comes with a bit of uncertainty. This summer, a trademark infringement lawsuit between Nestlé USA and Ultra Mundiales, a Mexico-based distributor, took over Mexican Instagram and TikTok.
An Examination and Interview Conversation on Today’s Patent Gender Gap
Patented products are versatile and diverse. They have the capacity to revolutionize, take the 3D printer. They can entertain adults and children, cue the Rubik’s Cube. And they can make us scratch our heads, like this 1876 mustache guard.
Lots of things that we use in daily life are patented. Patents give inventors rights over their invention. These rights include: the right to exclude others from making, using, offering for sale, importing into the U.S., and selling that specific invention. A patent is like a reward from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office given to inventors with new and useful inventions.
Continue reading “Girls Just Want to Have Patent Rights”
So, you had an idea – a good one.
It’s new! (Nobody has disclosed it to the public before, and you haven’t either, except within a certain time frame.)
It’s useful! (It’s not just theoretical; it does something in real life.)
It’s non-obvious! (It’s something more than a simple derivative combination of existing components.)
It’s patentable subject matter! (It’s a process, a machine, an article of manufacture, or a composition of matter.)
Continue reading “Fair, Accessible Patent Protection for the Modern Inventor”
A Massive Lawsuit Threatening the Reggaeton Genre
In 1989, Jamaican reggae duo Steely & Clevie released “Fish Market.” Since reggae first hit the music scene in the late 1960’s, the genre was still highly impressionable. Soon after release, it became known as the first example of a “dembow” rhythm – a sub-genre of reggae music distinguished by constant rhythm and faster beats per minute . The main element of Dembow is its riddim, a Jamaican term for rhythm which tends to be simple and repetitive.
Continue reading “Is a Rhythm Copyrightable? Bad Bunny’s Unique Defense to Copyright Infringement”
