Patent and Copyright Laws to Protect Every Business Idea or Personal Information from Reckless Use - Case Study Example

The City and State where it is located

Introduction

There have been cases in many areas of individual operations such as business and intellectual endeavours where some individuals decide to use others’ information without acknowledging them. As a result, many business analysts and managers have taken cognizance of the same and shifting their attention to property rights protection through patents and trademarks. In fact, patents are set to standard rights that an autonomous state gives to a particular person or company to use its public information for a specific period (Dolfsma 2011, 168). This process is contingent to the law of the state that guides the requirements of the company (patentee) to be protected. In this precept, the milieu of protection differs from one nation to another but operates under the whims of the internationally accepted statutes. Furthermore, any company that seeks such protections must prove that whatever it seeks protection for is not obvious but must be significant and worth granting such rights (patentable) (First 2006, 365). The rights exclusively protect the assignee from other people and companies from any attempt to make the profit from without its consent. In this instance, anybody or company that does that violates the laws that protect individuals in that line and must face the legal action.

Any company that takes the cover of patent rights enjoys the freedom of using the information that it has the license for and get the liberated space of decision making. For instance, a company that operates with everything that it wants without the fear of interdiction performs well in strategic management and development. The laws are instinctively harsh against the intellectual property rights and punish anybody or company that does the same (Wilkof and Basheer 2012, 20). Apparently, the only way to survive if one or a company wants to borrow any idea from another individual or a group of people is to get their approval. The laws are internationally instituted, though they reflect the statutes of an individual state. Meaning that every law allows for what an individual or company can apply for in order to achieve the patent authorities.

How Patent Laws Work

The patent allows the assignee to remain protected from anybody from using his, her or its information for the commercial reasons without its acknowledgement. It is given for a period that lasts for twenty (20) years upon which it becomes subject to renewal. In the corporate realm, a patent business body has more advantage compared to the one that does not have such protections. What this means is that when anyone or a company uses its, his or her tags without the authority then the government undertakes to defend and makes the law reward him, her or it for such violations. However, it does not allow any business that is under such cover (patentee) to exploit anyone or company using such rights. They still live to operate under the confines of the law and only dwell on the appropriate inventions as stipulated on the fiscal and business legislations.

Infringements

It features out when any individual or company uses the other company under the patent protection without their approval. In case such happens, the patentee sues the person or company that does that, something that can attract huge fines for compensation. However, the patent acts on a national foundation. This means that an item that is produced in one nation does not infringe the potent rights of another in another country unless the good is imported in that nation (Smith and Mann 2004, 246). When a good is produced in the United Kingdom, and the same exist in Spain, it is not considered an infringement unless the Spain takes their copyright item to Britain.

How its Laws are Enforced

The cases of infringements are only decided in the civil law courts such as the United States federal court in the United States of America. On the other hand, some countries such as France and Australia have specific consequences that that they attach to the laws that deal with infringement cases (Samuelson and Glushko 1989, 130). When a patentee reports the case of infringement, the other party who did the crime is put on the task of compensating the signee under the guidelines of the laws under which the Complainant is registered. The Complainant must prove to the court the validity of his, her or its claim concerning the same. The court deals with evidence, which the plaintiff must provide to justify the claim.

Besides, the accused (infringer) has the legal backing to refute the claim and defend herself, himself or itself during the progression of the judgement process. It is possible to declare the patentee’s position unacceptable when the claim does not meet the legal threshold as provided by the law, which is specific to different countries (Henkel, Baldwin and Shih 2013, 68). During the court process, the accused can provide any reason and defence to challenge the accusation. All through such attempts, the infringer can employ various methods of which if he, she or it succeeds then he, she, or it is allowed the freedom to operate and can be compensated by the complainant depending with the standpoint of the laws that were involved in determining the case such as the United kingdom’s certificate of contested validity.

In addition, there is patent licensing agreement that allows the patentee to make a claim if anybody or a company uses its, his or her information without the respect of the laws that protect the same. In case, such incidences occur, the patentee uses such certifications to file the petition to be compensated. On the same view, the law can go ahead to disallow the trade of the product or service that the pursuer captured.

A case of Infringement

Modern Dog sued Target and Disney over copyright infringement due to the images that appeared in one of their books. According to Modern Dog, the images of their puppies’ faces appeared in their artistic advertisements as presented in the following diagram.In their case, In their case, they accused Target and Disney of featuring their images in their tee shirts and websites for marketing strategies. In their claim, the companies were using their brands without their consent. According to Copyright Law of the United States of America’s information retrieved from “http://www.copyright.gov/fls/fl103.html,” the infringement that the case presented is the access of the Modern Dog records and using their images without their approval. In fact, this act of stealing has to attract legal penalty convictions. Furthermore, they claimed that Target and Disney encroached their information and that the book contained the warning against copyright, but instead they removed that part. In their submissions (Hunter2012, 23), Modern Dog said that the companies used twenty-six images from their chronicle books published in 2008.

How the Companies Operated

Modern Dog as a company is so sensitive about copyright protections and uses every platform to make it a reality. Much of its information is on the internet enlighten the society to observe and respect the property rights. According to the web video presented by Tonya Gisselberg, this must be the reason why it had to take it hard with any one that it feels taking a negative toll on anybody’s business. The law took effect anchored on the “infringing the federally registered copyright on the company’s copyrighted work” to use in promoting its commercial activities (Reichman 1994, 2436). The jurisdiction took centre stage in reviewing the violations that the action created and quoted segments of the statute that the violation falls under “Public Act of October 19, 1976, as amended and codified in 17U.S.C. § 101 et seq., and 17 U.S.C. § 1202 et seq.” According to plaintiff acknowledgement, the company is registered and protected under the laws that protect the companies’ privacy rights (Fine 1983, 69).

Moreover, the law recognizes the case, and as it operates in collaboration with other companies that include Type Director’s Club of New York, One Club, Communication Arts, HOW Magazine, Graphic Design USA and American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA), the company has a reputation of service. Therefore, encroaching its books to take its images that help its growth is the true violation that the law must inspect. According to the company’s information, it has received several awards for good services in the country. On the other hand, Disney Company as depicted by the case has business at 500 S BuenaVista St, Burbank, CA, 91521 making its operations from the state of Washington. By the provision of the acts, it offers the sale of several products over the internet including the one on a dispute. Any person who subscribes to buy them accesses the internet and makes a bid.

How the Case affected the Strategy of the Company

Modern Dog Company before the determination of the case did several campaigns on the internet seeking publicity and support to win the case. According to these endeavours, the company spent a lot of time and resources in the claim. According to the people who are against the company’s move, Modern Dog showed to be petty in it attempts to sue Disney in this matter. In the other effect, this move left a big financial hole in the company that has interfered with its operations. Its capital strength went down, and it had to struggle very hard to regain its feet.

Moreover, this case was so informative and enlightened the public about the effectiveness of the copyrights cover and the penalties that come along with doing the same. Copyright laws cover all areas of business operations. It is also related to intellectual property rights that are against any individual copying the work of another person directly and presenting it as his or hers without acknowledging the source of the information. The law against plagiarism is so stringent, and can kill an individual’s professional career. Furthermore, antipiracy is also another law that protects the use of other people’s work without their consent (Graham and Mowery 2003, 231). It is the reproduction of any material that belongs to another, and using it for commercial purposes. Many people get to the internet to download videos, music, images and animations to use it in various ways without giving credit to the owner. The law condemns such behaviors and makes them strictly subject to a criminal offence. Therefore, this case gave a lot of insight and validated the fact about patent and copyright laws.

How the Patent is owned

According to the patent laws, a person or a corporate body can register to be covered by the copyright laws. However, the United States only allows inventors alone to apply for the same. Most of the countries in Europe allow the sharing or passing over the patent rights to the employees, but this must only take place according to the stipulates of the law (David 2004, 10). What this means is that the law allows the employees of the company to act on its behalf to find the information, which the patent license provides under such statutes. In addition, it is possible for the patentee to acquire the right and sell it to another party. In other words, the initial owner gives the right to the new person or a company who uses it exclusively (Basheer 2012, 22). However, when this happens then the other person ceases to have the right to continue operating under such protections and if it does then it is handled as the disdain of the law. Therefore, any party entering into the patency agreement must understand all the laws that laws that fortify it in order to help in respecting them. As a result, the case that Modern Dog presented was valid.

Conclusion

Anybody or any company must work with the government agency for patent and copyright laws to protect every business idea or personal information from reckless use. The patent allows the assignee to remain protected from anybody from using his, her or its information for the commercial reasons without its acknowledgement. It is given for a period that lasts for twenty years upon which it becomes subject to renewal. Furthermore, patents are set to standard rights that an autonomous state gives to a particular person or company to use its public information for a specific period. This process is contingent to the law of the state that guides the requirements of the company to be protected. In this precept, the milieu of protection differs from one nation to another but operates under the whims of the internationally accepted statutes. However, it does not allow any business that is under such cover to exploit anyone or company using such rights. They still live to operate under the confines of the law and only dwell on the appropriate inventions as stipulated on the fiscal and business legislations. Furthermore, any company that seeks such protections must prove that whatever it seeks protection for is not obvious but must be significant and worth granting such rights. In addition, patent licensing agreement that allows the patentee to make a claim if anybody or a company uses its, his or her information without the respect of the laws that protect the same. In case, such incidences occur, the patentee uses such certifications to file the petition to get compensation.