It is sometimes thought that a solicitor or trade mark attorney must be instructed to register a trade mark. While this is a misconception, anyone thinking of applying to register a mark without a lawyer would do well to study the legal and procedural issues, as there are plenty of pitfalls for the unwary. The […]
Intellectual Property Law Archives - Page 2 of 2 - SEQ Legal
AdWords and trade marks: the current position
When you search the internet using Google, you get two types of results: “organic” results determined by the Google algorithm to be relevant to your query, and paid advertisements. The paid advertisements appear where an advertiser has bid on keywords relating to the search terms – i.e. has agreed to pay Google in respect of […]
Domain name rights
A complainant in domain name arbitration proceedings must establish rights in the trade mark or name used to ground the complaint. For example, the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (UDRP) only applies where: “[the registrant’s] domain name is identical or confusingly similar to a trademark or service mark in which the complainant has rights” […]
Scraping, data mining and data harvesting
Many websites incorporate data obtained from other websites. It is sometimes thought that, where the data obtained is not protected by copyright (e.g. data consisting of postal addresses arranged alphabetically) there are no legal problems. This is however a mistake: the collection and re-use of such data can present significant legal risks. As a matter […]
Scraping, data mining and data harvesting
Many websites incorporate data obtained from other websites. It is sometimes thought that, where the data obtained is not protected by copyright (e.g. data consisting of postal addresses arranged alphabetically) there are no legal problems. This is however a mistake: the collection and re-use of such data can present significant legal risks. As a matter […]
Dealing with website content theft
Website content theft is a common problem. Quality content can take a lot of time and effort (or money) to create – and it can be stolen in seconds by a child with a computer and a internet connection. Legal proceedings are the ultimate weapon, the nuclear option, in your armoury against website content theft. […]
Database right: how it may protect your website
Database right is similar to copyright, but distinct. Both database right and copyright may subsist in a single database quite independently. However, this note is concerned exclusively with the protection afforded to websites by database right, not copyright. In the UK, the key piece of legislation is the Copyright and Rights in Databases Regulations 1997. […]
Joint ownership of copyright
Clients usually think that joint ownership of copyright is a good thing; lawyers (in the UK at least) usually think that it is a bad thing. Why? A number of old English cases (e.g. Lauri v Renad in 1892, Powell v Head in 1879) established that a joint owner will not be allowed to exploit […]
Using your own photographs on your website
When you take a photograph, you own the rights in it, don’t you? Yes. And no. The person who takes a photograph will usually be the first owner of the copyright in the photograph (unless that person is an employee acting in the course of his or her employment). However, there are other rights to […]
Domain name choice and trade mark infringement
Trade mark infringement is a trump card when it comes to domain name choice. No matter how many good reasons you have for choosing a particular domain name, if the domain name infringes someone else’s trade mark, you should steer well clear. Why? First and perhaps foremost, trade mark infringement proceedings can swallow an immense […]
