Nancy Scola, Politico; Sources: Lee quit amid tensions over Patent Office funding
"Intrigue continues to surround Michelle Lee's abrupt resignation Tuesday as director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, with some sources saying it was triggered by the Trump administration's efforts to tap her agency's funding to pay for services at the Commerce Department."
Friday, June 9, 2017
Wednesday, June 7, 2017
The U.S. patent office has named its interim successor to Michelle Lee; Washington Post, June 7, 2017
Brian Fung, Washington Post; The U.S. patent office has named its interim successor to Michelle Lee
"The Commerce Department has tapped Joseph Matal, an associate solicitor at the U.S. Patent and Trademark office, to succeed Michelle Lee as interim director of the intellectual property agency, according to the USPTO.
Matal's appointment comes one day after Lee abruptly resigned from her position. As a temporary replacement, Matal does not need to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
Matal has served at the patent office for nearly five years, representing the agency in federal court."
"The Commerce Department has tapped Joseph Matal, an associate solicitor at the U.S. Patent and Trademark office, to succeed Michelle Lee as interim director of the intellectual property agency, according to the USPTO.
Matal's appointment comes one day after Lee abruptly resigned from her position. As a temporary replacement, Matal does not need to be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
Matal has served at the patent office for nearly five years, representing the agency in federal court."
U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Head Michelle Lee Resigns; Reuters via Fortune, June 6, 2017
Reuters via Fortune; U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Head Michelle Lee Resigns
"U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director Michelle Lee, who has won praise from technology companies for taking steps to minimize abusive patent litigation, resigned from her position on Tuesday, a spokesman for the agency has confirmed.
She joined the agency in 2012 and became interim director in 2013 before being formerly nominated as director by then-President Barack Obama in 2014."
"U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director Michelle Lee, who has won praise from technology companies for taking steps to minimize abusive patent litigation, resigned from her position on Tuesday, a spokesman for the agency has confirmed.
She joined the agency in 2012 and became interim director in 2013 before being formerly nominated as director by then-President Barack Obama in 2014."
Copyright in Seismic Data is Confirmed; JDSupra, June 7, 2017
JDSupra; Copyright in Seismic Data is Confirmed
"In a decision last year, GSI (Geophysical Service Incorporated) sued to win control over seismic data that it claimed to own. GSI used copyright principles to argue that by creating databases of seismic data, it was the proper owner of the copyright in such data. GSI argued that Encana, by copying and using that data without the consent of GSI, was engaged in copyright infringement. That was the core of GSI’s argument in multi-party litigation, which GSI brought against Encana and about two dozen other industry players, including commercial copying companies and data resellers. The data, originally gathered and “authored” by GSI, was required to be disclosed to regulators under the regime which governs Canadian offshore petroleum resources. Seismic data is licensed to users under strict conditions, and for a fee. Copying the seismic data, by any method or in any form, is not permitted under these license agreements. However, it is customary for many in the industry to acquire copies of the data from the regulator, after the privilege period expired, and many took advantage of this method of accessing such data."
"In a decision last year, GSI (Geophysical Service Incorporated) sued to win control over seismic data that it claimed to own. GSI used copyright principles to argue that by creating databases of seismic data, it was the proper owner of the copyright in such data. GSI argued that Encana, by copying and using that data without the consent of GSI, was engaged in copyright infringement. That was the core of GSI’s argument in multi-party litigation, which GSI brought against Encana and about two dozen other industry players, including commercial copying companies and data resellers. The data, originally gathered and “authored” by GSI, was required to be disclosed to regulators under the regime which governs Canadian offshore petroleum resources. Seismic data is licensed to users under strict conditions, and for a fee. Copying the seismic data, by any method or in any form, is not permitted under these license agreements. However, it is customary for many in the industry to acquire copies of the data from the regulator, after the privilege period expired, and many took advantage of this method of accessing such data."
Tuesday, June 6, 2017
Cupcake wars: Blogger sues Food Network over snow globe recipe video; Washington Post, June 5, 2017
Derek Hawkins, Washington Post; Cupcake wars: Blogger sues Food Network over snow globe recipe video
"Elizabeth LaBau’s holiday cupcake recipe was so popular it crashed her food blog.
It was clever, after all. LaBau, who runs SugarHero.com, had figured out a way to make edible snow globe cupcakes by coating small balloons in sheets of gelatin and letting them harden into translucent domes.
About three weeks after she published her tutorial, LaBau alleges, Food Network produced a how-to video on snow globe cupcakes that was so similar that it constituted copyright infringement."
"Elizabeth LaBau’s holiday cupcake recipe was so popular it crashed her food blog.
It was clever, after all. LaBau, who runs SugarHero.com, had figured out a way to make edible snow globe cupcakes by coating small balloons in sheets of gelatin and letting them harden into translucent domes.
About three weeks after she published her tutorial, LaBau alleges, Food Network produced a how-to video on snow globe cupcakes that was so similar that it constituted copyright infringement."
Copyright Office Releases an Updated Draft of the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices, Third Edition; [Press Release] U.S. Copyright Office, copyright.gov, June 1, 2017
[Press Release] U.S. Copyright Office, copyright.gov
Copyright Office Releases an Updated Draft of the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices, Third Edition
Copyright Office Releases an Updated Draft of the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices, Third Edition
Issue No. 666 - June 01, 2017
Acting Register of Copyrights Karyn Temple Claggett today released a revised draft of the Compendium of U.S. Copyright Office Practices, Third Edition. This draft includes the first proposed updates to the Compendium since its release in December 2014. The public draft is available on the Office’s website at https://copyright.gov/comp3/draft.html. It will go into effect on July 3, 2017.
The Compendium is the administrative manual of the Register of Copyrights concerning the mandate and statutory duties of the Copyright Office under Title 17 of the United States Code. See 37 CFR. § 201.2(b)(7). The proposed updates are the result of a comprehensive review of the Office’s practices and procedures. The draft revisions to the registration chapters clarify how and when the Office communicates with applicants and how it handles duplicate claims, deposit requirements, and claims involving multiple works, among other improvements. The update also provides preliminary guidance for claims involving useful articles based on the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Star Athletica v. Varsity Brands.
The draft revisions to the recordation chapter provide additional guidance for recording notices of termination and information on the Office’s new electronic system for the designation of agents. The draft update also addresses recent changes in the Office’s regulations, including the “mailbox rule” for requests for reconsideration, new procedures for removing personally identifiable information, and changes made by the Office’s technical amendments. For a full accounting of draft Compendium revisions, read more.
Additionally, the Compendium has been reformatted to improve readability for online and offline users. When the revision is released in final form, it will include improved hyperlinks to provide direct access to legal citations and resources on the Office’s website, as well as improved cross-references between chapters.
Public comments on this draft may be submitted from June 1 to June 30 using the provided form. See www.copyright.gov/comp3/draft.html for more information.
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