Intellectual Property Transactions

Catalog description

Patents, trademark, copyrights, and trade secrets each connote the ability to reserve to the holder the right to practice the invention, apply the mark, copy the expression, or retain the secret, respectively. However, simple retention of these rights or absolute conveyance of these rights to others may not maximize the holder's value in the property. Greater utility may be achieved by sharing some of the rights, while retaining others. This is the realm of intellectual property licensing. This course will survey key issues related to licensing each form of intellectual property, including the rationale behind the issues and alternative means of approach. The course will then touch on considerations of international licensing, licensing to the U.S. government, antitrust, and the non-negotiated license. Finally, the course will consider open licensing practices as found in open source software and the Creative Commons. Prerequisite: Intellectual Property.