IP

Question 1

IP

Answer 1

Exclusive rights in intangible assets.

Inventions, designs, texts, movies, music, celebrity, trade secrets, and trade marks

Question 2

Public Goods

Answer 2

Non-rivalrous
Non-excludable
Free Riders -> Market Failure

Question 3

Non-Rivalrous

Answer 3

My consumption of a resource does not diminish it for others to use

E.g. air, national defense, information

Question 4

Non-Excludable

Answer 4

I cannot exclude others from utilizing a resource

E.g. air, national defense, information, an open fishing pond

Question 5

Free Riders

Answer 5

Two Concepts:
Parasites
or
Enhance competition and help lower prices

Tension Between:

1. Providing incentives to create
2. Allowing widespread dissemination (copying) of creations

Question 6

Federal Law

3 Types of IP

Answer 6

Patents
Copy Rights
Trademarks

Question 7

Patents

Answer 7

(Inventions)

a. Processes, machines, manufactures, “compositions of matter”.
b. Term: 20 years from the date of filing

Question 8

Copyrights

Answer 8

(Expressive Works)

a. Literary, musical, choreographic, dramatic and artistic works, computer software.
b. Term: generally, the author’s life + 70 years.

Question 9

Trademarks

Answer 9

(Marks)

a. Brand names, logos, trade dress, product designs.
b. Term: may last indefinitely; but might become too generic. E.g.: aspirin.

Question 10

State and Common Law

Answer 10

1. Contract, tort, property
2. Trade Secrets
3. Unfair competition
4. Right of publicity

Default rule: the common law allows imitation and copying

a. “In the absence of some recognized right at common law, or under the statutes . . . a man’s property is limited to the chattels which embody his invention.”
b. Patent and copyright are legislative exceptions to the common law.

Question 11

Privacy Torts

Answer 11

1. Appropriation/Misappropriation
2. Public Disclosure of Private Facts
3. Intrusion into Seclusion
4. False Light Invasion of Privacy