Intercontinental IP

How To Get A Provisional Patent Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 17 Dec 2014 19:52:00 +0000

How to Get a Provisional Patent - First Time Inventor Advice

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 17 Dec 2014 19:43:00 +0000

Learn How To Protect Your Idea With Patents Trademarks and Copyrights

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 17 Dec 2014 18:13:00 +0000

TO DRONE OR NOT TO DRONE - PART VI - WHY SHOULD THE HOBBIEST DRONE USE

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 06 Nov 2014 18:58:00 +0000

Part 6: Why should the hobbyist drone user care about regulations pertaining to “commercial” drone flyers?

First, who knows when FAA will expand the definition of “commercial use” to include what you are currently doing?

Second, the drone community is desperately in need of innovation. We still have drones that don’t fly straight, fly away out of the control of the user, and just last weekend I personally witnessed another drone pilot have his $1,300 drone turn upside down and augur into the ground from 150’ or so feet, destroying the unit.

Wouldn’t it be nice to have Amazon.com, or Google, or Dominos Pizza pumping major money into R&D to give us all better drones? Is this going to happen with FAA basically prohibiting all commercial use outside of the arctic? Not in this country. Where will the large companies that would afford a few million a year for R&D go? Other countries. If you were Amazon.com, would you try to develop new drone technology here in the US (where, my guess is that they could not even test their drones under the FAA rules), or in Hong Kong, where drone regulations take up a single page of paper and basically come down to “use common sense”? The answers to these questions are obvious, and, if this is the future of drones in the US, will put us in a position where we are playing catch-up with foreign countries on technology.

TO DRONE OR NOT TO DRONE - Does Amazon Prime avoid the “commercial” classification?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 06 Nov 2014 18:57:00 +0000

PART V - Does Amazon Prime avoid the “commercial” classification and why penalize US farmers?

Example 3:
You can use a drone to move a box from point to point without any kind of compensation, but you cannot use a drone to deliver packages to people for a fee. Amazon.com is obviously the main issue here, as Amazon would like to use drones to deliver packages to people. Here is a new angle, I’m a member of Amazon Prime, so I get my packages delivered for free. If Amazon delivers my packages for free, with a drone, is it commercial? I would argue it is not, as I would not be charged whether it arrives by UPS or drone, and I would much prefer drone as it would get here in 10 minutes rather than 2 days.

Example 4:
You can use a drone to survey a field of crops “grown for personal enjoyment”, but not as part of a commercial farming operation. This is, in my opinion, ludicrous. Precision agriculture is extremely important for our country (and those other countries that buy our exported agricultural products). Why put us at a competitive disadvantage against those countries which regularly use drones to perform these functions?

TO DRONE OR NOT TO DRONE - REALTORS CAN'T USE DRONES! PART IV

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 17 Oct 2014 16:35:00 +0000

Example 2: Taking photographs with a drone for personal use is OK, but realtors can’t use their own drones to photograph a property they are selling, and a drone photographer can’t take pictures of a “property or event” and sell them to someone else. So, what if a home-owner takes some personal photos of a house, then later decides to sell the house, can the home-owner post the photos on a “sell-it-yourself” real estate website? Can the home-owner give the photos to a realtor who will then use them to try to sell the house for the homeowner? Should there be a distinction between photos taken before the home-owner lists the house or sale and those taken after the house has been listed for sale (at which point it could be said that the home-owner clearly intended to use the drone photos to sell the house)?

Over the past several months, I have seen a decided decrease in the number of drone operators who are clearly offering to shoot drone footage of real estate or other structures for a price. I have been personally following about five of these operators and suddenly they no longer offer footage for dollars, but rather talk about providing all-encompassing “solutions” to problems. So, is a “solution” that offers $10,000 of “consultation” with a free drone video thrown in “commercial”, or are they still “hobbyists”?

A category that the FAA didn’t directly address but which stands out in my mind is when people use drones for clearly “indirectly-commercial” purposes. For example, a number of outfits that either sell drones or sell services related to drones have all sorts of cool YouTube videos showing one of more of a) their skills as drone pilots, b) their complete disregard for FAA and other drone-related guidelines in what I consider to be an entirely inappropriate attempt to be “the cool rebel”, or c) how well their drone-related products work. None of these groups are actually taking cash for their flights, but all clearly are using drones to build an image they hope result in sales of their products or their services. Are these “commercial flights”?

If you shot a cool YouTube video from your drone and you put an advertising message at the beginning, does this transform an otherwise “hobby” flight into a commercial one?

My wife and I just completed a project in Thailand where we flew our drone over the roof of a Buddhist temple, then edited the footage to show the monks where they had missing roof tiles, birds nesting in the rafters, and even plants growing out of the side of the temples. We didn’t ask for any money from the monks, and the project was definitely one of the most fun and worthwhile things I have ever done, but if posting the video results a lot of people noticing the resort my wife and I own in Thailand, were they “commercial flights”?

TO DRONE OR NOT TO DRONE - Part III- So What Really Is "Commercial Use"?

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 10 Oct 2014 16:43:00 +0000

So what really is “commercial use”?

Let’s begin with the FAA guidelines. FAA recently released a document that included examples of what they considered “hobby” and “commercial” uses of drones. Let’s look at these examples and see what light they may shed on the subject.

Example 1: Flying a model aircraft at the local model aircraft club is “hobby”, but receiving money for demonstrating aerobatics with a model aircraft is “commercial”. OK, but what about a “drone competition”, where everyone who enters has to pay a $20 entry fee and the winner gets a grand prize of $200. Is the winner doing is “commercially”? Is the group putting on the event “commercial” because they are taking money to have other people fly drones? Is the result different if the winner gets a free drone as a prize? What about a free weekend at a local resort? Is this “commercial”? What if a major resort sponsored the event and gave away a free weekend at their resort for the grand champion drone flyer, but made all contestants agree that the resort could use their footage they shot during the event. Does that make the resort fall under “commercial use”?

I just attended a drone conference in Las Vegas where each day the organizers drew names from a hat and the winner won a free drone. The organizers didn’t fly any drones but clearly used the lure of a free drone to get attendees there. What if the organizers had hosted a drone-flying exhibition as part of the conference, and gave away a free drone as part of a raffle, would the “drone-flying” part of the conference make it “commercial”?

InterContinental IP Sponsors "Steam Maker Fest San Diego"

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 30 Sep 2014 16:40:00 +0000

Meet Eric Hanscom, managing attorney at InterContinental IP, Carlsbad, CA. He will be at the Steam Maker Fest in San Diego, as a sponsor and will provide valuable information to help inventors protect their ideas.

Event will take place on Saturday, December 6th, 2014 from 10am to 5pm (PST) at the Del Mar Fairgrounds so buy your tickets early. You Can Buy Tickets Here!

TO DRONE OR NOT TO DRONE? THAT IS THE QUESTION (PART ii)

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Thu, 25 Sep 2014 17:40:00 +0000

Part 2: FAA position: I quote from the FAA’s website, entitled “Busting Myths about the FAA and Unmanned Aircraft”.

A few choice excerpts:

“Myth #2: Commercial UAS flights are OK if I'm over private property and stay below 400 feet.

You may not fly a UAS for commercial purposes by claiming that you’re operating according to the Model Aircraft guidelines (below 400 feet, 3 miles from an airport, away from populated areas.) Commercial operations are only authorized on a case-by-case basis. A commercial flight requires a certified aircraft, a licensed pilot and operating approval. To date, only one operation has met these criteria, using Insitu's ScanEagle, and authorization was limited to the Arctic.”

So, to fly commercially you need a certified aircraft, a licensed pilot, and operating approval. Oh, and FAA has only approved one operation and that was limited to flying in the Arctic. Yep, glad I didn’t sell my patent law firm to become a commercial drone pilot!

“Myth #3: Commercial UAS operations are a “gray area” in FAA regulations.
Fact—There are no shades of gray in FAA regulations. Anyone who wants to fly an aircraft—manned or unmanned—in U.S. airspace needs some level of FAA approval.”
OK, let’s see how the appeal in Trappy v. FAA goes. FAA lost the first round, but will be putting in their best efforts on the appeal.

OK, now for the best one:

“Myth #4: There are too many commercial UAS operations for the FAA to stop.

Fact—The FAA has to prioritize its safety responsibilities, but the agency is monitoring UAS operations closely. Many times, the FAA learns about suspected commercial UAS operations via a complaint from the public or other businesses. The agency occasionally discovers such operations through the news media or postings on internet sites. When the FAA discovers apparent unauthorized UAS operations, the agency has a number of enforcement tools available to address these operations, including a verbal warning, a warning letter, and an order to stop the operation.”

I have heard through the grapevine that FAA has at least one full time employee scouring YouTube videos looking for commercial use of drones. I understand they also have employees looking on YouTube for “dridiots” (drone flyers who are idiots). A Dridiot can usually be spotted through a YouTube video that shows a shaky flight up over an airport runway, followed by a jerky flight over a national monument, with a closing shot from the inside of the Pentagon or some other highly restricted place. The Dridiot usually titles his (almost all Dridiots are male) video something like “Stunning aerial footage of the White House”, and he usually turns the drone back towards himself for part of the video and says something like:

“Yeah, I just got this drone out of the box, and didn’t understand the directions, particular that junk about compass companion, or compass fixing, or calibration, or something, so I just flew it and look at the cool footage! I just fired this sucker up, pulled back on the left toggle, and pretty soon I was up 1,500 feet, over the Statue of Liberty. Look at all the park police down there, I think they are waving at me! Here, let me pull the toggle sideways. Look, I can see planes from JFK airport coming right by me! Cool! Then I went to Washington D.C. and tried to see what the Obamas were having for dinner. Look, my drone is only 10’ from their window. Aren’t I cool? Then I went to Dulles Airport and flew in front of a Korean Airlines A-380 as it was taking off. Look at the middle-finger sign the pilots gave me, must mean “cool flying” in Korean or something like that. Must be an Asian thing because the China Airlines 747 pilots did the same thing when I buzzed their cockpit while they were landing. Yeah, I want to be a YouTube star and sell a million dollars in advertising. What? (background noise of pounding on the door) Must be some of my fans (background noise “FBI, open the door”) Yeah, I guess the FBI wants to hire me to shoot some videos or something . . . (angry voices shouting ”down on the ground Dridiot”, sound of handcuffs clicking . . .)

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY INFRINGEMENT DEFENSE INSURANCE

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Wed, 24 Sep 2014 16:43:00 +0000

The Defense policy reimburses litigation expenses to defend against charges of intellectual property infringement including the costs to assert patent invalidity as a defense, the cost of re-examination proceedings as a defense and past damages and/or settlement costs.

IP Covered under the Defense Policy:

US and worldwide coverage available. Includes making, using, selling, offering for sale, importing in commerce any product process or method of doing business

Advantages of holding the IP Defense Policy:

· Prevents abandoning market share by timely and forceful defense of infringement charges

· Prevents unexpected cash drain on operations

· Provides litigation funds to optimize a favorable outcome

· Deters frivolous suits by demonstrating the ability to be financially protected

· Reduces the pressure to settle infringement cases because of mounting legal expenses

· Makes a company more attractive to investors

Premiums

· The premium will be approximately 2% of the limit purchased. For example, the premium for a $1,000,000 coverage limit at 2% would be $20,000 per year.

· The cost will vary according to product and industry.

This material is for informational and promotional purposes only, and in no way changes the terms or effect of the policy language. Consult a copy of the Specimen Policy itself for all terms, conditions and exclusions.

For additional information please contact:

Alex Fjelstad

Senior Vice President

Twin City Group

4500 Park Glen Road

Minneapolis, MN 55416

952-924-6910 or afjelstad@twincitygroup.com

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY ABATEMENT (ENFORCEMENT) INSURANCE

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 23 Sep 2014 19:50:00 +0000

The Abatement policy reimburses litigation expenses to enforce intellectual property rights against infringers as well as countersuits or post-grant reviews for invalidity. In the event the insured loses the IP lawsuit the Abatement policy responds as a pure insurance policy. In the event the insured wins the IP lawsuit and has recognized an “Economic Benefit” the insured reimburses only the money paid out by the insurer and retains any additional recoveries. Repayment of the “Economic Benefit” reinstates policy limits and those funds are then available to pursue other infringers. IP covered under the Abatement Policy includes patents, trademarks, copyright and trade dress.

Advantages of holding the abatement policy:

· Prevents loss of market share by timely and forceful response to infringement

· Prevents unexpected cash drain on operations

· Provides litigation funds to optimize a favorable decision for the IP holder

· Reduces pressures to settle because of mounting legal expenses

· Attracts investors who may be asked to fund the business

· Strengthens the "licensbility" of the IP

Premiums:

· The premium will be about 1 to 2% of the limit purchased. For example, the premium for a $1,000,000 coverage limit at 1% would be $10,000 per year

· The actual cost will vary according to the type and number of IP covered

Alex Fjelstad

Senior Vice President

Twin City Group

4500 Park Glen Road

Minneapolis, MN 55416

952-924-6910 or afjelstad@twincitygroup.com

TO DRONE OR NOT TO DRONE? That is the Question...

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 19 Sep 2014 17:02:00 +0000

Part 1: Can I fly one? Well, it depends on who you are. If you are a government, lifeguard service, electrical company, the coast guard, etc., you need a Certificate of Authorization from the FAA. If you are a non-commercial user, such as someone who flies for fun and not profit, you need to follow FAA’s “Special Rule” for model aircraft. So who is left? Well, it is the “commercial” user (the ranks of which are rapidly shrinking of late, with lots of clearly commercial users who would post their prices and services now just discussing how “consulting” with them might benefit a user, or how the “solution” they come up with could help an advertising campaign). Under the latest FAA discussions, it appears that if you want to fly commercially you need not only the Certificate of Authorization that the governmental entities need, but also a “Certificate of Airworthiness” and a Special Exemption (sounds a lot like a “permit” to me).

So, the government folks have it relatively easy, the hobbyist/recreational drone flyer needs only to abide by the “special rules” (more on this later), but the commercial operator has relatively turbulent skies ahead. The first thing that comes to mind with FAA regulations is whether FAA even has the power to regulate drones, much less commercial uses of drones. On one side, there is “Trappy” and his lawyer, who claim FAA lacks jurisdiction to assess fines on drone operators. On the other side, the FAA makes is pretty clear on their website where they think their jurisdiction lies.

(Eric Hanscom regularly flies his drone, below 400 feet, and for purely hobbyist purposes, and tries not to be a dridiot)

Can We File? Joan Rivers was No Stranger to Trademarks...

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 05 Sep 2014 17:03:00 +0000

Joan Rivers was known much better in the field of comedy than intellectual property, and while there are plenty of accolades being given her for her genius as a comedian, we think she should also be recognized as someone who understood the value of a trademark.

Starting way back in 1984, Joan began trying to trademark a well known part of her comedy routine, the phrase “Can we talk?” and on September 9, 1986 she was awarded US Trademark No. 1408489 for “CAN WE TALK?” in the field of GREETING CARDS, WRITING PAPER AND ENVELOPES, NOTE CARDS, AND PAPER NAPKINS AND PLACEMATS. But did she stop there? No, not only could she talk, but she could file trademarks. Soon to follow were:

1849038 and 1842345 for “YOU DESERVE TO BE HAPPY”, 1818890 for JOAN RIVERS CLASSICS COLLECTION, 2085516 for “JOAN RIVERS”, 2114309 for "JOAN'S WORLD", 2150995 for "IMPERIAL TREASURES BY JOAN RIVERS", 2291516 for “BABY HEARTS”, and 2293497 for “BABY HEARTS BY JOAN RIVERS”. And this was all by the close of 1999.

The turn of the century saw Ms. Rivers heading right back to the USPTO with 2358260 for “DO IT NOW!”, 2293628 for “NAIL CLASSICS”, 2293629 for “JOAN RIVERS NAIL CLASSICS”, 2388350 for the rather long trademark on “YESTERDAY IS HISTORY, TOMORROW IS A MYSTERY. TODAY IS GOD'S GIFT. THAT'S WHY IT'S CALLED THE PRESENT.” For a jewelry line, 2742296 and 2474106 for “JOAN RIVERS RESULTS”, 2364280 for “PINK CHAMPAGNE”, 2574314 for “HEARTS & FLOWERS BY JOAN RIVERS”, 2847704 for “JOAN RIVERS BEAUTY”, and last but certainly not least, 4566503 which issued in July of 2014 for “IN BED WITH JOAN” for “Entertainment services, namely, providing on-going webisodes featuring Joan Rivers interviewing celebrities via a global computer network.”

So, while Ms. Rivers’ intellectual property pursuits are not the foremost thing in people’s minds when they think back on her life, her accomplishments in this area are worth remembering as well.

Redskins Defend Name - Trademark Decision - InterContinental IP

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 19 Aug 2014 22:52:00 +0000

Washington Redskins, filed a lawsuit Thursday in U.S. District Court in Alexandria. Patent and Trademark Office in San Diego, California. Eric Hanscom, managing patent attorney at InterContinental IP

Redskins are asking for a chance to defend their name, which they contend celebrates Native Americans. Native Americans who won the headline-making patent case

Patents San Diego ICIPLAW - Intercontinental IP San Diego

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 24 Jun 2014 20:56:00 +0000

Why Intellectual Property (IP) Law?

Intellectual property strategy (due diligence, opinions and counseling) ; patents, (inter partes patent proceedings, new patent post-grant proceedings, patent prosecution,patent reexamination and reissues); trademarks (domain name disputs, international trademark, trademark application proseution, TTAB proceedings); copyrights; unfair competition; litigation (arbitration and other ADR, CA litigation, complex/joint defense litigation, copyright litigation, consumer electronics litigation, fedral circuit appeals, ITC litigation medical device litigation, trade secret litiation. trademar; trade secrets ; rights of publicity; licensing

San Diego Intellectual Property Law Association

Become educated on IP law, Patent, Copyright, and Trademark law!
We are an intellectual property law firm that believes that the quality of our people and the results we obtain speak for themselves. We value experience and believe communication strengthens our ability to achieve success. We emphasize customer service as a top priority in every task we take on. We have a proven track record of successful work and our attorneys are community conscious people who bring passion and dedication to all they become involved in.

Learn more!

San Diego Patent Law Firm - San Diego County - Patent Attorney - San Diego Patent Lawyer

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Fri, 20 Jun 2014 21:51:00 +0000

We can register your issued copyright with the U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP), a bureau of the Department of Homeland Security. The CBP has a copyright database and recording system for all copyrights that have been previously issued as registered copyrights by Library of Congress Copyright Office, which is used to help the U.S. Customs officers in detecting and seizing counterfeit goods that infringe registered copyrights. The copyright database is accessible to U.S. Customs officials at all 317 ports of entry into the U.S. Our fee to file starts at $670 US, including the CBP filing fee.

Learn more!

So you've got an idea, a really good idea. It may not be as revolutionary as the light bulb, the airplane, or the microchip, but you're sure it could be the next big thing. Maybe it has been percolating in your mind for years, or perhaps it struck in a flash of inspiration just last night. Either way, it's yours, and you're determined to do it justice -- which is why you're planning to get it patented, post-haste.

Learn more!

San Diego Patent Pending Services!

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Tue, 17 Jun 2014 23:29:00 +0000

Protection of Patent and Trademark

Patent and Trademark registration is your best protection from infringement. If you have created a new idea you feel may need a patent, or, you have a unique symbol or trademark which identifies your product and consider it valuable and protect it!

Our Services

More often than not, a utility patent application will receive at least one office action. An office action is a rejection, at least in part, of your application. An office action response can be used to make amendments to your application, argue the patentability of your application, and to correct procedural issues. Most simple mechanical, substance, or business method office action responses can be handled for a fixed fee. Please contact us for a more specific fixed fee quote for your office action.

San Diego Patent Law - Intercontinental IP

noreply@blogger.com (Anonymous) — Sat, 31 May 2014 02:20:00 +0000

We can register your issued trademark with the U.S. Customs & Border Protection (CBP), a bureau of the Department of Homeland Security. The CBP has a trademark database and recording system for all trademarks that have been issued on the Principal Register, which is used to help the U.S. Customs officers in detecting and seizing counterfeit goods that infringe registered trademarks. The trademark database is accessible to U.S. Customs officials at all 317 ports of entry into the U.S., and includes both words and stylized images used in a trademark. Our fee to file starts at $670 US, including the CBP filing fee.

ICIP Law: San Diego based Intellectual Property Firm