Intellectual property (IP) protection is necessary. But with rights comes responsibility; a responsibility to not misuse such rights. Automattic, the web publishing platform most famous for WordPress, uploaded a ‘Hall of Shame’ list after getting tired of its users being harassed by copyright and trademark infringement notices. WordPress is a free blogging tool and content management system. As with any site uploading content there are bound to be intellectual property issues from time to time but not all have merit.

At Traklight we are all about protecting intellectual property, but understanding when you have an actual cause of action is equally important as needless litigation wastes time and effort, while giving you a bad reputation in the market (assuming you do not have a legitimate claim). Creation of IP rights is to protect against exploitation, not curb the freedom of speech. Among the various people/ companies on Automattic’s list is Janet Jackson. Her lawyers attempted to remove / control all references of her on WordPress. One of the claims included trademark infringement for using her name in the following blog “Dinner Party Conversation: What would your WWE Smackdown name be?”:

Continue reading “Enforcing Intellectual Property Rights: Protection v. Free Speech”

What an incredible event! Funny enough, I realized on the shuttle over to the event on Tuesday morning that it was my one year anniversary with Traklight, and getting to attend INBOUND was the best work gift—EVER! HubSpot announced that over 10,000 people registered for the event, a record number of attendees. 

Continue reading “Lessons for Entrepreneurs from Malcolm Gladwell at #INBOUND14”

Imagine: You’re an entrepreneur working hard in the lab or slaving over a hot yellow legal pad coming up with the next big idea; the next invention that is going to change everything. Finally you arrive at the solution! You rush into the streets, into a grocery store and shout it out at the top of your lungs.

Continue reading “Protect Your Idea or Invention without Breaking the Bank”

I’ve never been to a hackathon. To be honest, I’ve never experienced anything quite like it. I couldn’t believe that some of the participants hadn’t slept in 36 hours because they were still all furiously typing away, smiling and laughing with each other!

But why would any of these young coders, developers, and entrepreneurs care to be interested in Traklight or intellectual property (IP)? Continue reading “What a Hacker Taught Me about Intellectual Property”

This will be Traklight’s last webinar. Don’t fret, because we will still be cranking out useful content for you in another form. Who better to end our monthly webinar series with a bang than Jennifer Hill, Co-Founder of Sixty Vocab? Mark your calendars for September 30 at 11 AM. Continue reading “Webinar Announcement: Taking the Plunge into Entrepreneurship”

Last week saw two popular artists file a complaint for copyright infringement.

Eminem, the Detroit rapper who rocked the world with his hard hitting rhymes is suing the National Party of New Zealand for using the music for his hit song “Lose Yourself” in a campaign video. The campaign video to promote John Key, who is up for re-election, has since been taken down but the National Party rejected the allegations leveled against it stating the music was taken from the Beatbox library and, although similar, is not identical nor does it include any lyrics.

The complaint has been filed in Wellington, New Zealand. Hopefully the High Court will recognize the importance of respecting foreign copyrights, certainly considering how important the New Zealand legal system considers intellectual property rights. A spokesman for Eminem’s publisher stated, “It is both disappointing and sadly ironic that the political party responsible for championing the rights of music publishers in New Zealand by the introduction of the three strikes copyright reforms should itself have so little regard for copyright.” Lose Yourself has been licensed to only a handful of companies and certainly not to any political party as the publishers are against such usage.

Continue reading “Eminem and Iggy Azalea Out for Blood: Copyright Infringement”

Last week’s Traklight on Forbes series shared 5 Tough Lessons from Fundraising. Check back every Thursday for more content. Thanks for reading!

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When you’re first starting a business, becoming a thought leader in your industry is probably the last thing on your mind. But as we see the increased use of inbound marketing and content distribution sway our purchasing decisions, is is more important than ever to consider the ways in which you may become an influential part of your professional circle. 

Continue reading “Forbes Update: 7 Tips For Thought Leadership On A Startup Budget”

College football is one of America’s most popular sports, and it affords the young men who play it the opportunity to become household names before they even reach the legal drinking age. From the greats of yesteryear like Archie Griffin, Herchel Walker, and Doug Flutie, to more recent icons like Tim Tebow and Johnny Manziel, the game affords these nascent stars a brief moment to burnish a legacy that will live as long as their respective universities field a football team. Given the fleeting nature of college athletics (and college in general), and the particularly short shelf lives of football players, it would seem the logical step for any high-profile athlete to try and cash in on that stardom, which is exactly what one young quarterback seems poised to do.

Continue reading “Add Trademarks to the “Trill” List”

Did you catch last night’s season premeire of Shark Tank? If you have been busy working out the details of your innovation, you may not have had the opportunity to tune into this popular TV show on which entrepreneurs seek investments from five self-made multi-millionaires and billionaires.

If you have watched the TV show, then you know that once the business financials are highlighted, the next question the Sharks ask is, “Do you have a patent?” You also know that if there is no patent, or even a patent pending, each Shark immediately responds by saying, “I’m out.”

Let’s look at two essential reasons for the Sharks’ response, and how entrepreneurs benefit from patents: as a way to suppress potential competition and to get investors to say, “I’m in.”

Continue reading ““I’m In”: Why Entrepreneurs Use Patents”

Clear definition and protection of intellectual property (IP) is a must for startups, and yet as a new business it may be difficult to determine what should be protected.

Here are a key few items to consider in planning stages:

Continue reading “Intellectual Property Flowchart for Startups”