April 2005 Archives

By Steve Persall -

In these dog days before summer blockbusters, the best drama - and some comic relief - from Hollywood isn't found in theaters, but in courtrooms and legislative chambers where the defense of intellectual property is opening a six-pack of worms.

Last week, Congress sent a bill to President Bush that will make videotaping in theaters a federal offense. The president is expected to sign it into law, believing it also curbs Michael Moore.

By Michael Hiltzik -

Computer-maker is tone-deaf on public good

For all its skill at designing products that strike an emotional chord with consumers, Apple Computer Inc. sometimes projects a corporate personality as chilly and arrogant as an oil company's.

The latest manifestation of this trait is an Apple lawsuit implicitly aimed at a couple of online publications, Apple Insider and PowerPage, that compile tips, rumors and speculation about the company as sedulously as People counts celebrity stretch marks.

The Open Source Yoga Unity (OSYU) is using open source laws to prevent Bikram Choudry from copyrighting his form of yoga. Because Bikram has written books about his method for yoga, he is attempting to prevent others from using any part of his method of performing yoga routines in a hot room.

However, OSYU contends that Bikram is attempting to copyright forms that are thousands of years old and should therefore be in the public domain. Thus, the group is using the same open source laws, such as those in the software industry, which state that anything in the public domain can be freely used by anyone.

Source: NewsTarget

Organization Joins International Community in Call for IP Awareness and Action

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--April 26, 2005--The Business Software Alliance (BSA) today joined the global community in commemorating 2005 World Intellectual Property Day, an initiative to educate young people about how intellectual property rights foster innovation, creativity and economic opportunity.

By Birgitta Forsberg -

Silicon Valley a magnet for trade secret theft -- and it's often an inside job

When Shin-Guo Tsai gave notice of resignation from his job as a design engineer at the Fremont semiconductor company Volterra on Feb. 15, he allegedly told his manager that he was returning to Taiwan to get married and that he didn't have a job lined up.

The Information Office of the State Council, China's cabinet, Thursday issued a white paper titled New Progress in China's Protection of Intellectual Property Rights.

The white paper, the second of its kind since 1994, gives a "brief introduction" to and "explanation" of China's efforts and new progress in protecting intellectual property rights (IPR) over the past decade.

The document is intended to "help the international community have a better understanding of the real situation regarding China's IPR protection and make a proper judgment."

By Cao Li, Cui Ning (China Daily) -

Officials launching a week-long anti-piracy campaign across the nation got a shot in the arm from a Shanghai court yesterday: Two Americans were among four people found guilty of selling pirated DVDs on the Internet.

Randolph Hobson Guthrie III, the prime culprit, was sentenced to 30 months' jail and fined 500,000 yuan (US$60,459).

By Franca Gargiulo -

Once seen as a threat mainly to the recording industry and high-end luxury goods makers, the theft of intellectual property is now so widespread that it touches nearly every company, every country, and Silicon Valley is particularly vulnerable.

Take medicines. According to the World Health Organization, close to one out of ten drugs sold around the world is counterfeit, and the situation is worse in developing countries, posing a real threat to public health and safety.

By Michael Hiltzik -

David Tran is a Vietnamese refugee and a successful American entrepreneur, but the best evidence that his business is one more cog in the vast machinery of global commerce — licit and illicit — comes from what we might call the Great Hot Sauce Counterfeiting Caper.

No one is ever surprised to hear about Chinese factories assiduously knocking off Rolex watches or Windows software. In this case, however, the counterfeiters' target is the Vietnamese-style Sriracha chili sauce manufactured by Tran's Huy Fong Foods Inc. in a former Wham-O factory in Rosemead.

By Bruce Schneier -

Identity theft is the new crime of the information age. A criminal collects enough personal data on someone to impersonate a victim to banks, credit card companies, and other financial institutions. Then he racks up debt in the person's name, collects the cash, and disappears. The victim is left holding the bag. While some of the losses are absorbed by financial institutions -- credit card companies in particular -- the credit-rating damage is borne by the victim. It can take years for the victim to clear his name.

By Nick Schulz -

The current debate in the United States over how Americans will finance their retirements has focused so far on reforms to Social Security, such as President Bush's proposed private accounts. But as important as this debate is, America's retirement security depends in large measure on decisions that will not be made in Washington, but in places like Beijing, New Delhi, and Brasilia. And if recent developments in Brazil -- including an announced plan for theft of American and European property -- are any indicator, the future is worrisome.

By Cecil Johnson -

The Robin Hoods of hacking should be praised and rewarded, not imprisoned, says celebrated hacker, corporate-security consultant, author and ex-convict Kevin D. Mitnick.

In his latest book, The Art of Intrusion, written with William L. Simon, Mitnick assesses hacking -- penetrating security systems as a creative art that can be practiced for malicious or good ends.

A group of U.S. government officials are visiting Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Singapore April 11 to 21 on an outreach mission intended to encourage cooperation and improved coordination in efforts to enforce intellectual property rights (IPR) and stop trade in counterfeit goods, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) says.

In an April 11 press release, the Office of the USTR says the officials will meet with government counterparts and private sector representatives to promote a Bush administration initiative called "STOP!" -- "Strategy Targeting Organized Piracy."

by Moumita Bakshi -

Craig Mundie of Microsoft feels India must develop IP, stop renting out IQ, and facilitate more VC investment. Excerpts from a chat.

AS Chief Technical Officer of advanced strategies and policy in Microsoft Corporation, Craig Mundie reports to Chairman and Chief Software Architect, Bill Gates, and works with him to develop technical, business and policy strategies for the company.He coordinates and implements aspects of strategies that span multiple Microsoft product groups.

By Stacy Cowley -

NEW YORK - P-to-P (peer-to-peer) file-trading enthusiasts like to rant about the draconian steps taken by groups like the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) to enforce laws protecting their intellectual property rights, by shutting down distribution systems like the original Napster. But can those enthusiasts be organized into an influential grassroots organizing force?

BEIJING, April 7 (Xinhuanet) -- China has arrested 419 suspects for trademark infringement crimes in the past five months, an official with the Ministry of Public Security (MPS) said at a press conference on the State Office of Intellectual Property Protection here Thursday.

Since the beginning of a one-year campaign against trademark infringement launched by the MPS from last November, more than 340 cases involving 100 million yuan (12 million US dollars) have been found, said Gao Feng, an official with the MPS.

Either the open-source model, or traditional intellectual property practices will have to change substantially to viably work together, according to a new study soon to be published by the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution (AdTI).

The study, "Intellectual Property -- Left?", is authored by Kenneth Brown, a member of AdTI's board of directors. Brown's three-part series discusses the theoretical, empirical, and financial impact of unchallenged copyright and patent infringement alleged in the open source model.

by Achara Ashayagachat -

Pattaya _ More than 1,200 farmers, slum dwellers and HIV/Aids patients from 30 civic groups staged a six-kilometre walkathon yesterday from a temple in Jomthien to the Royal Cliff Beach Hotel to drive home their demand that intellectual property rights (IPR) be removed from free trade talks with the United States.

They were disappointed as the Thai negotiators, led by former ambassador to the US Nitya Pibulsonggram, could not meet their demand. Even getting through to the venue of the third round of free trade area (FTA) negotiations almost resulted in violence until 15 representatives were allowed to voice their concern face-to-face for the first time with the Thai officials.

By David Morrill -

IT SEEMS like a great idea.
When an intense moment happens in a PlayStation video game, the controller in the player's hands vibrates, giving the player a more intense experience.

For Sony, it was the key element to the company's Dual Shock controllers.