Michael’s an Arizona native who brings passion and integrity to Traklight. One of his favorite quotes from Sandlot is, “Heroes are born, but legends never die.” Michael claims he’s neither, but he does evangelize Traklight.
Cocktails, Dinner, and Intellectual Property
My cousin and her family were visiting Philadelphia last summer and she was telling me how her good friend, Mary Juetten, founded a start-up that was very cool, very interesting, and that we should connect, quite simply, because we would like each other. Fast-forward two months when Mary visited Philadelphia to speak on Crowdfunding at LES’s Annual Meeting when I had the good fortune to meet up with her for a pre-conference dinner.
Continue reading “Cocktails, Dinner, and Intellectual Property”
Why Stay? Life at a Startup
I often wonder why people would choose to stay and work at a startup when they have a choice; when I talk about “people” I talk about the keepers who you definitely know are good and could go and find something to do somewhere else and in virtually all cases, for more money. So then why would people choose to stay and voluntarily step up to the wall, take their honored position side by side with each of their associates, and day in, day out, pound their head against the wall?
I had to give this some thought. I had to relate back to my direct experiences not only in my personal career but those at Traklight as well. I needed to understand. What follows are my personal observations on how the keepers in a startup are the necessary life blood of your company. Hopefully, this reflection is also helpful in defining the culture of your startup as well.
Help the Economy: Protect the Intellecutal Property in Your Business
Protecting intellectual property is an essential action far too many businesses still don’t realize is more than necessary. Even worse, those same businesses don’t realize the implications beyond hurting their potential for profit. In reminders from IT experts this last year, we see that the theft of intellectual property is starting to make a major impact financially on businesses. In turn, the U.S. economy and the process of innovation could be rattled to its core soon if IP theft is allowed to continue.
Continue reading “Help the Economy: Protect the Intellecutal Property in Your Business”
Enjoy the “Big Game,” But Don’t Run Afoul of NFL Trademarks
NFL quarterback Peyton Manning is known for his pre-snap cadence, shouting words like “Omaha!” and “Hurry!” as part of his football theatrics. But can you ever imagine a signal-caller (that’s Peyton, or any other guy under center) barking the word “copyright!” at the line of scrimmage?
Continue reading “Enjoy the “Big Game,” But Don’t Run Afoul of NFL Trademarks”
Candy Crush Saga receives trademark on the word “Candy”
Creative Commons: all rights reserved v. some rights reserved
Facebook and FiftyThree Square Off Over Commonplace Word “Paper”
On Tuesday January 30th, social media giant Facebook unveiled their highly anticipated news-reading app called “Paper.” The app is, in many ways, a new alternative user interface for Facebook itself. The first section within the app will be the user’s own Facebook newsfeed followed by themed sections with content on a variety of topics. Users will also be able to post their own stories. Many are touting “Paper” as the best Facebook app ever. There’s just one problem: the name.
FiftyThree, a New York- and Seattle-based app maker, has claimed that they hold the rights to the name “Paper by FiftyThree.” The app maker filed for trademark in May of 2012. According to a New York Times report, FiftyThree reached out to Facebook asking them to refrain from using the name “Paper” for their new app. However, according to FiftyThree chief executive Georg Petschnigg, Facebook apologized for not letting them know sooner and were moving forward with their launch. As a result, FiftyThree filed for a trademark on the name “Paper” on January 30th, the same day the new Facebook app launched.
Continue reading “Facebook and FiftyThree Square Off Over Commonplace Word “Paper””
3 30-day Hubspot Blog Challenge Challenges Overcome
We all recognize the writer in movies who just can’t seem to find the words. Sitting at their typewriter, composing a love note and spilling their undying love, ripping page after page from the typewriter in increased frustration. Or the poet turned rockstar looking to compose their next big lyrical riff, burning both ends of the candle night after night to come up with a million dollar chorus.
When it comes to blog writing, many can appreciate the anxiety that it causes and the series of questions that follow when asked to contribute content to, say, a company blog. “What if no one reads what I write? What if no one understands my point? How can I possibly write a blog – I’m a terrible writer!”
I’m happy to share that our Traker team truly rallied together to contribute content for me to regularly post. That being said, I wanted to share our top three take aways, and also help you increase your blogging frequency as well with some tips and tricks. Of course, as always, be sure the content you’re sharing is yours, or is cited properly. IP infringement is a big deal and not something to trifle with (I mention this to remind you to never share without consent).
So what did our Trakers learn in creating regular content? And how can you apply these lessons with your company? . . .
Continue reading “3 30-day Hubspot Blog Challenge Challenges Overcome”
The Pirate Bay no longer banned in the Netherlands
One of the most used piracy sites is the aptly named “The Pirate Bay”. It was founded in 2003 in Sweden and in 2009 after much legal controversy, the founders were found guilty for facilitating illegal file sharing of copyrighted material. They received a one year jail sentence and had to pay a 46 million SEK fine. But the sites popularity continued to soar, frustrating copyright advocacy groups around the world. But following a number of court cases and government proactive action, The Pirate Bay has become one of the most censured sites on the internet. It is banned in the U.K., Italy, China and a number of other countries.
Continue reading “The Pirate Bay no longer banned in the Netherlands”