January ← 2011 ← Innovation Law Blog

January 31: global intellectual property governance

Jan

2011

On January 31st, Professor Margaret Chon of the University of Seattle will be speaking on the subject of global intellectual property governance, in the context of the WIPO’s Development Agenda. The event, which is co-sponsored by the Centre for Innovation Law and the Law and Development Society, will take place at the University of Toronto ...

The implications of anti-spam legislation

Susan Deefholts

Jan

2011

Michael Fekete spoke today at the University of Toronto Faculty of Law, discussing the implications of anti-spam legislation for legitimate business promotions in Canada. The Canadian legislation, which has yet to come into effect, will have significant implications for businesses of all sizes.

Network Neutrality

Giselle Chin

Jan

2011

The internet has always been hailed as the way of the future, facilitating free speech and economic growth like never before. Its openness has never been questioned. Or has it? Comcast’s, not unexpected, takeover of NBC last week marked the latest checkpoint in the escalating open internet debate. While the merger is certain to transform ...

Do Corporations have Personal Privacy Rights?

Catherine Marchant

Jan

2011

In a case involving the US telecommunications giant AT&T, the US Supreme Court considered whether or not a corporation could have personal privacy rights. AT&T had tried to block the release of documents it had given to the Federal Communications Commission, basing the attempt on an exemption in the Freedom of Information Act which protects ...

Canada’s Inadequate Drug Patent Protection? 1

Giselle Chin

Jan

2011

The Canadian Intellectual Property Council is urging Canada to toughen its patent protection for drug makers if it does not want to lose out on lucrative pharmaceutical investment and jobs to the U.S. and Europe. According to its recent report, the life of a patent in Canada, once the drug is on the market, is signiﬁcantly shorter than ...

WikiLeaks, Twitter and communications privacy law

Catherine Marchant

Jan

2011

Although we may be tired of reading the word “WikiLeaks”, the United States government’s reaction to Julian Assange’s revelations has brought issues of privacy law in communications to the forefront. According to the Associated Press, the U.S. Department of Justice obtained a court order from a district court in Alexandria, Virginia, on December 14th, asking ...

Marilyn Monroe IP Rights Purchased

Giselle Chin

Jan

2011

Authentic Brands Group LLC (ABG), a leading intellectual property corporation led by Toronto-based Jamie Salter, recently announced their acquisition of the intellectual property rights of Marilyn Monroe. The purchase was made in conjunction with National Entertainment Collectibles Inc., a global media and entertainment company. A press release by ABG stated that “Marilyn Monroe’s legacy will ...

California Supreme Court rules that police can search arrestee’s cell phone

Billy Barnes

Jan

2011

In 2007, Gregory Diaz was arrested for attempting to sell drugs to a police informant. When he arrived at the police station his cell phone was seized and his text messages searched. The California Supreme Court recently held that the search was constitutional, comparing the messages in the cell phone to heroin tablets in a ...

VLC and the Apple App Store

Billy Barnes

Jan

2011

On Friday, Apple removed the open source VLC media player from the App Store. It is believed (though not known for sure) that this happened as the result of a copyright complaint made two months ago by a developer named Rémi Denis-Courmont. A professor told my class last week that if we ever wanted to ...

Increase in Patents Issued to Apple

Catherine Marchant

Jan

2011

According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple, which has become an increasingly important force in the world of technology, was issued almost twice as many patents in 2010 than in 2009. The company was issued 563 patents in 2010, 289 in 2009 and 186 in 2008. This makes Apple #46 in IFI Claims Patent Services’ ...