Whether you’re firm is just starting out, you are a growing company or you own a large multi-national, you’re hopefully acutely aware of the role your employees must play in protecting your IP. The question is: are they? A recent survey carried out by data control specialists Clearswift found that an alarming number of employees…
Have you seen that Christmas TV ad with the moon and the telescope? No, not the John Lewis advert, the Aldi parody that’s also hitting the headlines. While the creative ‘budget’ take on the most-talked about advert of the season is not judged to be a breach of copyright due to the ‘fair dealing’ exception…
Whether you’re actively considering taking your business to the next level through franchising or you’re just getting started on launching your idea, it pays to be aware of the potential implications of franchising. Since the ability to successfully run a franchise scheme depends on having effective protection of your IP in place, we always advise…
The humble KitKat is making media headlines thanks to some magical melting moments brought about by a Japanese café. The eatery in question is slotting chocolate fingers of all flavours within the folds of warm patisserie (full details here). This innovation is surely to be commended by fans of the globally popular snack but aside…
Have you heard the one about the social media platform that started taking down jokes? No, really! In case you missed it, Twitter has started to remove jokes that are reported as plagiarised from others in an attempt to protect the copyright of comedy. So, as the Edinburgh Fringe Festival comes to a close, we…
Social media and food photos go together like jam and bread, tea and scones or an ice cream on a hot summer’s day. Some of the most successful accounts on Instagram are those of food bloggers who share snaps of their own creations and meals they’re enjoying at restaurants and even Facebook feeds see a…
The popularity of easy-to-use craft selling platforms such as Etsy and Folksy means the number of kitchen table businesses continues to grow. Unfortunately, many of these new small businesses are typically run by solo crafters don’t have a great deal of intellectual property knowhow. According to recent figures released by Etsy, the firm responded to…
We’ve mentioned before some of the proposed changes to EU copyright law contained in a report authored by German MEP Julia Reda. Today we’re exploring the potential impact of another element – a change to the “freedom of panaroma”. We’ll also be introducing some wider considerations about the ownership of photograph copyright.
Changes to copyright law could be on the way thanks to a British court ruling that has overturned exceptions to digital copyright rules made by the government last year as well as the contents of a new report presented to the European parliament Legal Affairs Committee. What are the changes? Regular readers of this blog…
Are you a small business owner who is struggling with IP issues or do you run a startup and you’re finding it tricky to get to grips with how you should protect your IP assets? Well, according to recent research, you’re not alone. A survey conducted by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) led the…
