1. Protection â the IP subsisting in, or relating to, a new brand, product or service needs to be protected to ensure success. This may involve applying for trademark, copyright, design or even patent protection. We can help clients decide when this is necessary.

2. Choosing a brand and avoiding infringement â the brand that you choose should allow the clientâs customers to tell them apart from their competitors and can be anything from a traditional name or symbol, to a more unusual trademark such as a shape, color or sound. It is important that the trademark is distinctive of the goods and services that you provide and not deceptive or contrary to law or morality. It is also important that it does not conflict with a third partyâs trademark rights. We can help clients to find out whether their chosen brand is being used by another business or has, in fact, already been registered.

3. Brand promotions â it is only once the clientâs brand is protected that they can confidently invest the time and money required to successfully promote that brand, whether through traditional billboard, poster, TV or print advertising; or through point of sale, on-pack or online promotion. If, due to commercial pressures, the client needs to go...

European based film group Studiocanal has made a â150 million Euro ($202.5 million) three-year slate financing deal with London based film financing fund Anton Capital Entertainment (âACEâ).

ACE will take a 30% stake in the English-language movies and films with international potential theatrically released by Studiocanal over the next three years. The deal will allow the European studio a three-year movie financing capacity for English-language and international movies, on Studiocanal productions, co-financed pictures and movies acquired for distribution, of at least â500 million Euros ($675 million) through 2014.

Studiocanal will invest in about 100 films through 2014, spread between international independent movies, family fare and animation, elevated genre and local event pictures. The ACE deal has already kicked in and includes Studiocanal-financed hit "Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy," staring Gary Oldman and Colin Firth.

It also takes in the Coen brothers' "Inside Llewyn Davis," set in the 1960s Greenwich Village folk scene, and Michel Gondry's French-language "The Foam of the Days," an adaptation of Boris Vian's novel.

Studiocanal will continue to invest in local movies made out of France, U.K. and Germany, where it runs...

In an increasingly knowledge-driven economy and online trading environment, Intellectual Property (IP) is a key consideration for any type and size of organization. Trademarks, patents, copyright and designs are fundamental to the protection of an organizationâs investment into research and development, marketing and creativity.

IP can open the door to new revenue streams through licensing, franchising and joint ventures. On the other hand IP owned by other organizations may be a trap for the unwary. It is therefore critical for businesses and marketers to know:

I. What IP do you own.

1. Patent

2. Trademark

3. Copyright

II. How to protect that property.

1. Patent â The new America Invents Act (Patent Reform Act of 2011," Pub.L. 112-29), relating to Patent was signed by the President on Sept. 16, 2011, so itâs anyoneâs guess if it will make things better or worse.

However, under the new system it would advisable to:

A. File as soon as possible.

B. Keep your invention secret.

C. Get a partner.

2. Trademark â Trademark in the US is governed by the Lanham Act (15 USC Â1051 et seq), which establishes right to the exclusive use of trademarks, services marks and trade names. It establishes a registration process and a process to...

Why should intellectual property be integrated in your business plan?

New and original ideas are the driving force of successful businesses in the 21st century. Therefore, safeguarding the expression of those ideas from inadvertent disclosure or its unauthorized use by competitors is becoming increasingly critical for developing and retaining a competitive advantage.

Building a business also requires various types of other resources, including a network of relationships and sources of funds. A developed intellectual property (IP) protection system provides a key tool for (1) keeping at bay unscrupulous competitors, (2) developing relationships with employees, consultants, suppliers, subcontractors, business partners and customers, and (3) obtaining funds.

To be accepted by a business incubator or to attract investors and ultimately grow your business, it is necessary to have a quality business plan that takes an objective look at the prospects of the proposed business. In order to convince investors you will have to show that (1) there is a demand for your product in the market place, (2) your product is superior to competing products, if any, and (3) you have taken adequate steps to prevent `free riding' on your success by...

On September 16, 2011, President Obama signed the patent reform bill (America Invents Act â Patent Reform Act of 2011) into law, finally ending a seven-year debate for innovation advocates and opponents who had initially hoped to significantly overhaul the patent system. Obama has repeatedly said the bill will spur job growth, however, patent experts have challenged that characterization.

"It really doesn't create jobs for anybody except maybe patent lawyers," says James Besson, a lecturer at Boston University School of Law and a fellow at Harvard's Berkman Center on Internet and Society.

While Congress has been wrestling with the legislation for the better part of a decade, they have steadily eroded the bill's original purpose and instead they have delivered a law that appears to favor politically entrenched corporations, from banks to multinational drug companies at the expense of small inventorâs rights.

While standing next to Eli Lilly Chief Executive Officer, John Lechleiter, at a science and technology focused high school in Alexandria, Obama again called upon the âspirit of entrepreneurshipâ and the âjob creating power of innovation,â saying the bill will make it easier and faster for inventors to obtain patents.

Obama...

Science fiction legend and 77 year old author, Harlan Ellison is attempting to kill a high-profile movie that is scheduled for release next month. The Hugo award-winning writer has filed a lawsuit against New Regency and director Andrew Niccol over the 20th Century Fox-distributed film, In Time, starring Justin Timberlake, Amanda Seyfried and Cillian Murphy. He is demanding an injunction to prevent the film's October 28 release and the disposal of all copies of the film.

Ellison filed his lawsuit last Wednesday in California federal court with allegations of copyright infringement on the part of the producers of In Time, including Niccol, who is renowned for his sci-fi films including The Truman Show, Gattaca, and S1mOne.

Copyright lawsuits in Hollywood are certainly plentiful, but rarely successful because plaintiffs typically struggle to meet the high burden of showing substantial similarity. Will Ellison's case be any different?

Ellison says the new film is based on his multiple prize-winning 1965 work, "Repent, Harlequin! Said The Ticktockman" which the complaint calls one of the most famous and widely published science fiction short stories of all time and that the film "copies key plot elements, themes, characters,...

Those of my readers who work in the entertainment industry (and especially whose who do work in Texas) will find it interesting that, effective September 1, 2011, the Texas Legislature repealed Texas Law and removed registration requirements for, and the authority to regulate talent agencies.

Supporters of repealing the code section made the following comments:

It is inefficient and unnecessary to continue the state licensing of talent agencies â.. The number of licensees â is so small that there is no benefit to the consumer to continue regulation â. The Deceptive Trade Practices Act would provide sufficient protections to consumers who could be harmed â.

Talent agencies originally were regulated to protect actors from fraudulent agents. However, there is widespread activity by unregulated parties that offer similar services, and the regulations are easily circumvented, rendering them ineffective.

Those who opposed the repealing of the regulation stated:

Regulation of talent agencies originally was enacted to ensure that actors were not swindled by talent agents who would take money in exchange for future services and then disappear and also to protect legitimate talent agencies. If there is widespread activity by unregulated...

After the filing of the now ongoing lawsuit between Apple and Amazon over the trademark âApp Store,â it is not surprising that Microsoftâs new Windows 8, operating system will include an app store, but will it be called âapp store.â

Steve Sinofsky, who is in charge of Windows 8 development for Microsoft, broke down in a blog post the dissimilar teams working on definite aspects of the new OS and an âApp Storeâ team was on the list.

An app store is, obviously, a store that sells applications, software to run on Windows 8 machines.

The addition of an app store in Windows 8 is an accepted one, and not much of a shock given Appleâs huge success with selling mobile apps through iTunes and desktop apps through the Mac App Store.

Appleâs iTunes has seen more than 15 billion apps downloaded and purchased a huge benefit for Apple and vast attraction for developers.

A June screen shot of Windows 8 also featured, significantly, a âshopâ icon with a Windows logo adorned bag sitting next to it. Microsoft has embraced the app store idea with Windows Phone 7âs app Marketplace.

Even the much used Windows Vista had an app store called the Windows Marketplace, though it (or Windows Vista) never found much recognition.

If the current lawsuit...

As reported in my previous article, Apple had been sued by an Arizona company over the iCloud trademark.

However, the trademark lawsuit filed against Apple in June has reportedly been dropped by iCloud Communications LLC, which had originally claimed "irreparable injury" to its cloud computing business.

The Phoenix, Arizona-based outfit said in its original complaint against the iPad maker that usage of the iCloud marks to promote the firm's goods has taken place for the past six years at considerable marketing and advertising costs.

"Monetary relief alone is inadequate to fully address the irreparable injury that Apple's illegal actions have caused and will continue to cause to iCloud Communications if this court does not enjoin Apple," it thundered at the time the complaint was filed.

"iCloud Communications is, therefore, entitled to preliminary and permanent injunctive relief to stop Appleâs unfair competition."

iCloud Communications added that the saturated media coverage surrounding Apple's recent Steve Jobs-endorsed announcement about its cloudy offering, dubbed iCloud, had damaged the company's association with the mark.

But according to Phoenix New Times, iCloud Communications has now ditched the suit and is in the...

Welcome to the digital age!

Not that long ago it took several thousand dollars worth of elaborate and bulky video equipment to make a music video (even as an amateur). Now with a very inexpensive digital video camera (most of which record in HD now) and some free software, you, yes even you can produce, publish and broadcast your video around the world! And yet, how scary and fraught with danger.

I understand that many people use the latest and greatest technology and are encouraged to incorporate their favorite songs in videos to make their production more captivating. After all, every great video needs music, and any that do not use audio for enhancement lack in professional quality.

And this is the scary part, when a teacher or student (or member of public) uses a chosen piece of popular music in his or her video. In some cases they are instructed to use only 30 seconds or less of copyrighted music material so as not to infringe on copyright.

What are the potential issues?

1. Background music is not viewed as educational use for purposes of fair use.

Just because youâre producing a video at an educational institution does not mean that the copyrighted music content is for educational purposes. It is ancillary. In following...