Ron Zink: intellectual property and how to protect your brand and innovation
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Transcript of Ron Zink: intellectual property and how to protect your brand and innovation
How to Protect Your
Brand and Innovation
Ron Zink, Associate General Counsel, Microsoft Corporation
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IP as a Business Tool
Think Comprehensively– Where is your market?
– What differentiates you from competitors?
– Who are you partnering with?
Develop and Own Your Plan– Understand Your Goals
– Prioritize
– Measurement
Use Available Resources– Free tools online
– Professionals
–Ask the right questions
–Scope the work
–Set budgets
Trademarks – How can you protect your brand?
• The first IP protection most
companies seek is for their
brand.
• Business Week/Interbrand
report that the Top 10 global
brands represent a collective
value of $423 billion.
1 $68,734m
2 $60,211m
3 $56,647m
4 $47,777m
5 $34,864m
6 $32,275m
7 $31,980m
8 $31,330m
9 $30,636m
10 $28,447m
http://www.interbrand.com/best_global_brands_intro.aspx
Trademarks – How can you protect your brand?
• Trademarks generally must be
registered to receive protection.
• Trademarks must meet certain
legal requirements to be
registered.
– A symbol – word, graphic, etc.
– Distinctive
– Used in connection with goods or
services
– Not descriptive or generic
– Not the same as or confusingly similar
to another registered or famous
trademark
– Not deceptive or against public policy
• Trademarks are often indicated by ® or ™ symbols.
Trademarks & Domain names – Protecting your brand
• You can search on-line to see if your
mark is already registered.
– UK: www.ipo.gov.uk/types/tm/t-os/t-find.htm
– EU:
oami.europa.eu/CTMOnline/RequestManager/en_Sear
chBasic
• You can register a trademark on-line.– UK: www.ipo.gov.uk/types/tm/t-os.htm (£200+)
– EU:
http://oami.europa.eu/ows/rw/pages/QPLUS/forms/elec
tronic/fileApplicationCTM.en.do (€900+)
• You can register your domain name. – Offive Live Small Businesss:
http://www.microsoft.com/smallbusiness/products/offic
e/microsoft-office-live/default.aspx#overview
– Tips for picking a name:
http://office.microsoft.com/en-
us/officelive/FX102041591033.aspx?ofcresset=1
Copyright – How can you protect your ‘expression’?
• Copyright covers all kinds of
creative and technical
expression, including computer
programs, websites, photos,
film, manuals and other text.
• In the EU, copyright protects all
forms of ‘expression’ of
software– not just source and
object code but also GUIs, for
example.
Copyright – How can you protect your ‘expression’?
• Copyright protection is
automatic when the work is
created. It is not necessary to
register a copyright in the EU
and most other countries.
• Many developers do register
copyright works with the US
Copyright Office, which
provides evidence of copyright
and some litigation benefits. http://www.copyright.gov/eco/ ($35+)
http://www.copyright.gov/records/
Patents – How can you protect your inventions?
• Patents are available for
technical inventions in any field
of technology.
• There are both design & utility
patents.
• Patents provide broad
protection for the functionality
or underlying principle of an
invention.
• Inventions must meet a 3-part
test to be patentable.
•Has it ever been done before or completely described in a published document?
•US: “New”
Novel
•Would someone of ordinary skill in the technological field come up with this, even if not completely described before in one place? Does the invention make a ‘technical contribution’?
•US: ‘Non-obviousness’
Inventive Step
•What does the invention accomplish –does it accomplish what it’s intended to do?
•EU: Industrial Applicability
Industrial Application
Patents – How can you protect your inventions?
• Patents must be registered in
order to give you protection.
– UK/EU: search for patents at
http://gb.espacenet.com/search97cgi/s97_cgi
.exe?Action=FormGen&Template=gb/en/qu
ick.hts
Case Study
Business Model
Hardware
Peripherals
Games
Xbox Live
Peripherals
Games
Xbox Live
Intellectual Property, Small Business and the EU
Key messages:
1. Small businesses rely on IP.
2. Patents are important to protect
all kinds of ICT innovations,
including those embodied in
software.
3. Small businesses need better cost-
effectiveness and access to the IP
system, particularly in any new EU
patent.
4. There is help out there.
61
42
39
51
22
49
0 20 40 60
Market Share
increased
Turnover increased
N.of employees
increased
ICT SMEs with IPR
ICT SMEs without IPR
IP use by SMEs means increased market share, turnover, employment
89% of ICT SMEs use IPRs
46% use or plan to use copyright
32% use or plan to use patents
50% of open-source software developers use patents
10%+ higher market share, turnover, employee growth for IP owners
2.1% expected annual growth in IT spending 2008-2013
0.0% expected annual GDP growth in economy overall 2008-2013
IDC study for European Commission, Intellectual Property Rights and Competitiveness: Challenges for ICT-Producing SMEs (2008), http://www.ebusiness-watch.org/studies/special_topics/2007/documents/Study_08-2008_IPR.pdf
How to Protect Your
Brand and Innovation
Ron Zink, Associate General Counsel, Microsoft Corporation
Ph
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gra
ph
© C
hri
s H
arv
ey | A
ge
ncy: D
rea
mstim
e.c
om