"Soft" intellectual property
How soon should Mickey Mouse be allowed to enter the public domain?
By John Martinson NIA Vice President
Members of the Nevada Inventors Association are mostly interested in patent able ideas and the patenting process,
and reasonably so since most of us either hold patents or are working on devices we hope to patent.
"Soft" property specialist
But there's a whole world of soft intellectual property out there-copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, licensing
and business agreements-about which most of us know much less. To help us learn more about that world and, hopefully,
profit from such knowledge, Lara Pearson will be the featured speaker at our October meeting.
The Law Office of Lara Pearson, Ltd., in Incline Village, focuses exclusively on "soft intellectual property."
That office drafts, files and renews trademark and copyright applications; monitors the market for trademark infringement;
drafts noncompetitive and non-disclosure agreements; negotiates, drafts and reviews intellectual property licensing,
and competes other transactional (non-litigation) intellectual property work.
The copyright law has recently been in the news because of a landmark case before the U.S. Supreme Court. Our first
Congress established a 14-year term for copyright protection, with a 14-year extension if the author was living.
Life plus 70 years
The most recent congressional extension of that term (in l998) granted copyright protection for 70 years after
the death of the author. The litigants in the present case are asking the Supreme Court to declare that extension
unconstitutional. Ms Pearson is following the case and will be able to explain some of the arguments involved.
A patent holder enjoys a limited monopoly over the use or licensing of an invention. Likewise, the copyright holder
of a written work, a work of art or music, or the lines of a computer code.
Protects creativity
Without such protection, creative individuals would be less motivated to share their ideas. However, without a
limit on this kind of protection, the general public's enjoyment of the benefits of such creations would be restricted-probably
unduly.
How to strike the balance between what is reasonable or undue protection? Isn't 70 years [after Walt Disney's death]
long enough for the government to protect the image of Mickey Mouse from falling into the public domain?
These and related questions will be the subject of our
October 26 meeting in Room 101 of Washoe Medical Center.
October 26, 2002 Regular Meeting
9 a.m. - noon Room 101,
Washoe Medical Center
November 23, 2002 Regular Meeting
9 a.m. - noon Room 101,
Washoe Medical Center
December 28, 2002 Regular Meeting
9 a.m. - noon Room 101,
Washoe Medical Center
The Sonny Bono Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998 increased protection of copyrighted material from the life
of the copyright holder plus 50 years to the life of the author plus 70 years.
Why should inventors care about a law that primarily affects writers, artists, and musicians? The U.S. Copyright
Office in The Library of Congress defines copyright protection:
Copyright is a form of protection provided by the laws of the United States (title 17, U.S. Code) to the authors of "original works of authorship," including literary dramatic, musical, artistic, and certain other intellectual works.
Now look at the nonspecific phrase, "certain other intellectual works." A superficial search of the Copyright
Office's website (http //lcweb.loc.gov/copyright) showed that vessel hull designs, semiconductors, and Mask Works
are all protected through the Copyright Office.
Design protection
The law explains that "although design protection and copyright protection... are both administered by the
Register of Copyrights, they are not identical. Design protection differs significantly in most respects, including
term of protection, ownership, eligibility, scope of protection and registration procedures."
Semiconductor chips
These integrated circuits are "used to operate many consumer, medical, commercial, and industrial products
and machinery." The Act defines them as "the final or intermediate form of any product (1) having two
or more layers of metallic, insulating, or semiconductor material, deposited or otherwise placed on or etched away
or otherwise removed from a piece of semiconductor material in accordance with a predetermined pattern; and (2)
intended to perform electronic circuitry functions."
Mask works
These are a "series of related images, however fixed or encodes (1) having or representing the predetermined
three-dimensional pattern of metallic, insulating, or semiconductor material present or removed from the layers
of a semiconductor chip product; and (2) in which series the relation of the images to one another is that each
image has the pattern of the surface of one form of the semiconductor chip product."
Vessel hulls
The vessel Hull Design Protection Act protects "original designs of vessel hulls," and grants the owner
of an original design "certain exclusive rights provided that application for registration of the design with
the Copyright Office is made within two years of the design being made public." Unlike inventions which must
be patented to protect their creator's ownership, copyrighted material is considered the property of its creator
as soon as it is created.
Formal protection
If the copyrighted material is to be broadly published as a book or a magazine, it is wise for the creator to formally
register the copyright. If you sell an article to a magazine or newspaper, your rights will be negotiated as part
of your contract. In the case of design registration, do your homework to be sure you are fully protected.
Does all this "governmentese" sound confusing? Come to the Oct. 26 meeting and learn more about how to
take full advantage of all the kinds of protection available for your invention.
Help yourself and NIA at the same time
It's that time of the year again: Time for many people to look at ways to save on their 2002 taxes. If you're one
of them, you might be able to help yourself and NIA at the same time.
Many people find themselves with assets they can't really afford to sell because they face a net loss, either because
of a current cash value much lower than the purchase price or because a piece of real estate that seemed like a
steal years ago when it was purchased has risen to the point where too much of the selling price would be absorbed
by taxes.
Assets or cash?
If you sell an appreciated asset and donate the proceeds to a nonprofit organization, you are liable for the capital
gains tax on that asset, but if you donate the asset directly to the nonprofit, you can claim a deduction for the
full amount, according to an article by Kay Bell on the Bankrate.com website.
Another advantage to supporting nonprofits is that the IRS doesn't set a threshold your gifts have to meet. Be
aware, however, that anything you receive in return for your donation- merchandise, a dinner or performance, or
similar item-you can deduct only the amount above the item's fair market value. Also, be sure to get a written
acknowledgment of any gift above $250 to support your claimed deduction.
Research on the 'net
An Internet search from your server's home page business reference button can send you to such interesting sites
as those for H & R Block, Bankrate.com and even the IRS.
But even with these resources at the ready, it is always safest to check directly with your tax preparer, a tax attorney or other knowledgeable consultant.
Page done by Vince Chemist.
Created on Nov. 2 2002
Updated on November 29, 2005