What does Intellectual Property Mean for Innovation?
Innovation is hard work. The real challenge is overcoming organizational resistance. It is not just about learning tools and methods but touches upon a variety of emotions (innovators as well as others) and embedded in its core is experimentation, collaboration and diversity.This then means that several elements are involved in the creation of value, specifically an output of the mind that is expressed: Intellectual Property (IP).
When we think innovation we think about a technologically enabled world where messages are easily transmitted, transactions are confirmed quickly and life now has easier flow with a modern twist. Whether in architecture,design, software development, product development, art, music, literature, medical technology, education or business it is undeniable that a great degree of initial investment on the part of the innovator/creator helps to push this ‘change’. One such important change for the benefit the catalyst and the increasing ease of digital communication, has caused increased in priority regarding managing IP.
IP registration is essential because it provides very strong proof for a creative that a work belongs to him or her, thereby granting the exclusive rights of ownership.
Change in Work Trends
Stalwarts of industry have invested many years of service to the private/public sector over the course of their career and try to underscore the importance of ‘making a name’ to their children. This approach is not often preferred by Millennial and Generation Z offspring who instead seek value and personal fulfillment over financial stability and professional actualization. This extends to also reflect the flexibility of traditional organizational structure as they manage output. Practically, outside of strict freelancing, this looks like persons being gainfully employed/contracted to an organization but also engaging in value creating activities outside of work. Depending on the contractual agreement between the parties the employee/contractor may benefit additionally for their work or they may have to relinquish certain commercial aspects of the work the company.
Moral Rights
The law provides that non-economic rights are not to be ignored. Moral rights automatically attribute to any work you create. They are rights that your work is attributed to you, and to not have anyone distort your work.These rights can apply to individual artists/authors who may sell their works, as well as employees who create works for an employer and do not retain IP rights in the work.
Creatives/Innovators have the right to be known, in fact, their work should be attributable to them at all times. This helps the creative industry, persons with creative/ innovation needs will see different suppliers in the market and will be able to do a comparative analysis and suppliers can do the same. Where can the greatest amount of value be exchanged?
Proof of Leverage
In 1994, Adidas and Payless got into a scuffle over stripes. Adidas had used its three-stripe mark as a logo of sorts since 1952, and had recently registered it as a trademark. But Payless was selling confusingly similar athletic shoes with two and four parallel stripes. The two companies hashed out a settlement, but by 2001, Payless was again selling the look-a-likes. Fearing that the sneakers would dupe buyers and tarnish its name, Adidas America Inc. demanded a jury trial. The trial lasted seven years, during which 268 pairs of Payless shoes were reviewed. In the end, Adidas was awarded $305 million.
2020 started with headlines reporting that pop star, Miley Cyrus, settled a US$300M copyright infringement lawsuit filed by Jamaican songwriter, Flourgon. The claim essentially alleged that Miley Cyrus’ hit song, “We Can’t Stop”, was similar to, and misappropriated content from Flourgon’s song, “We Run Things”. Later the dispute was settled out of court for an undisclosed amount. While this settlement has been heralded as a big win for Jamaican music and the rights of Jamaican artistes not to have their works used by others without authorization.
Following steadily In the USA, The Supreme Court has rescheduled oral arguments in the case of Google v. Oracle (Supreme Court 2020) until Fall 2020. Oracle asked for $9 billion in damages over what it said was Google’s wrongfully copied 11,500 lines of computer code verbatim, as well as the complex structure and organization inherent in that code, in order to help its competing commercial product. In January 2019 to challenge the two rulings that were made by the Appeals Court towards Oracle’s favour, Google centered their petition on whether copyright extends to a software interface like an API, and whether the use of the Java API by Google fell within fair use as found at the jury trials In the case, Google also suggests that if the naming-convention is copyrightable that any copyright should be so “thin” that fair use would readily apply in most situations. The case will now be argued in October or November 2020 with a decision likely in in 2021. As innovation takes on new design, does copyright offer ‘full-gamut’ protection to innovators of software?
Whilst innovators/creatives share their work to help improve society, these cases avidly capture in essence, the value of their hard work, and the benefits to be reaped from the fruits of their labour. It is then, imperative for innovators/creatives, in all fields, to understand the importance of IP law in unlocking the key opportunities that are available to them, however, before companies/individuals would be able to exploit these opportunities, and making their work public, it will also be necessary for them to have at hand, the irrefutable proof of proprietorship, paramount to that is REGISTRATION!
About the author: Shannon Stephenson holds a Bachelor of Laws (LLB)from the University of Technology Jamaica. She is keen on issues related to intellectual property, information technology, data protection, software, e-commerce, internet and telecommunications technology and corporate/commercial transactions. She currently serves as the Intellectual Property Management and Compliance Officer at Innovate 10x Limited where her appreciation for the innovation, information technology and business serves to sharpen her skills as an IP professional. To reach her please send email to shannon@innovate10x.com.
