football.jpgIPNews® – Facebook Inc. was hit with a putative trademark infringement class action on behalf of retailers of officially licensed National Football league merchandise on Monday, alleging it is allowing counterfeiters to post ads for knockoff NFL goods.

Facebook goes so far as to allow counterfeiters’ ads to show up as sponsored links on the Facebook pages of legitimate licensed NFL gear sellers, Inkies Sports Inc., which does business as Krystal’s NFL Shoppe, says. Inkies claims it is even starting to suffer from consumer confusion over whether it is affiliated with the counterfeiters. To continue reading, click: Facebook Abets Counterfeit NFL Gear Sales, Lawsuit Says

microsoft.jpgIPNews® – Emblaze Ltd. accused Microsoft Corp. of infringing a patent for an Internet media streaming system in a new lawsuit filed in the Northern District of California on Friday.

Various features of Microsoft’s Windows 7 and Windows Phone 7.0 operating systems allegedly violate Emblaze’s rights in U.S. Patent Number 6,389,473, which covers technology used for real-time broadcasting over a network like the Internet. Emblaze has also sued Apple over the same patent for its alleged unauthorized use of the technology in its smartphones, tablets and computers. To continue reading, click: Israeli Tech Co. Sues Microsoft For Web Media Streaming Patent Infringement

iphone-apps.jpgIPNews® – The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has tentatively nixed Apple Inc.’s patent for its iPhone “rubber banding” screen bounce-back feature, a patent that was key to the company’s $1 billion infringement verdict over Samsung Electronics Co. earlier this year.

The PTO declared all 20 claims of U.S. Patent No, 7,469,381 to be invalid upon reexamination, according to a Samsung court filing late Monday. The European Patent Office is also in the midst of reexamination proceedings for the European equivalent of the rubber banding patent. To continue reading, click: PTO Shoots Down Apple Bounce-Back Patent At Heart Of Samsung Case

hanger.jpgIPNews® – Nordstrom Inc. sued an Internet clothing retailer in Seattle federal court on Friday over its unauthorized use of Nordstrom’s federally registered “Rack” trademark in relation to discount clothing sales.

NoMoreRack Retail Group Inc. and NoMoreRack.com Inc. have refused to stop treading on Nordstrom’s intellectual property rights in the Rack name despite repeated demands, Nordstrom’s complaint says. The web retailer’s site sells products that directly compete with merchandise sold in Rack stores, according to Nordstrom. To continue reading, click: Nordstrom Seeks To Shut Down Web Retailer’s Use Of “Rack” Trademark

pills-tablets.jpgIPNews® – Purdue Pharmaceuticals LP’s patent infringement claims against KVK Tech Inc. for preparing an abbreviated new drug application for a generic version of Purdue’s blockbuster painkiller OxyContin will go forward, a New York federal judge ruled Friday.

KVK had argued that although it did all the necessary work to come up with the generic drug, another company had filed the ANDA itself and only the filer can be held liable. It is undisputed that KVK did everything but sign the final forms, though, Judge Sidney H. Stein ruled. To continue reading, click: Purdue Allowed To Pursue Generic OxyContin Patent Claims Against KVK

samsung.jpgIPNews® – Samsung Electronics Co. and Apple Inc. exchanged blows on Friday over whether the jury foreman’s alleged misconduct in the smartphone and tablet patent infringement trial that yielded a $1 billion verdict against Samsung earlier this year warrants holding a new trial.

Samsung’s allegations that jury foreman Velvin Hogan lied about his involvement in past litigation and ties to Samsung’s law firm do not meet the high standard for a new trial, Apple said. Samsung, meanwhile, blasted Apple’s requests for a broad new injunction and enhanced damages on top of the existing verdict. To continue reading, click: Samsung, Apple Spar Over New iPhone, iPad Patent Trial

lincoln_memorial.jpgIPNews® – A graphic designer and illustrator is accusing A&E Television Networks LLC of misusing virtual computer images he created of Jesus Christ and Abraham Lincoln beyond the scope of its copyright licensing agreements for the images.

Raymond Downing won an Emmy for the virtual Lincoln he made for A&E’s History channel program “Stealing Lincoln’s Body,” and subsequently created the virtual Jesus animations for History’s “The Real Face of Jesus?” program and a followup on the biblical accounts of the 40 days after Jesus’ resurrection. Those copyrighted images and animations were licensed to A&E solely for those specific programs, and the network has breached its agreements by reusing them, Downing says. To continue reading, click: A&E Accused Of Infringing 3D Jesus, Lincoln Image Copyright

chicken_soup.jpgIPNews® – The inspirational book publisher Chicken Soup for the Soul Publishing LLC came under fire from Campbell Soup Co. in New Jersey federal court on Wednesday for attempting to launch its own line of actual soups bearing labels that are confusingly similar to the iconic Campbell logo.

Chicken Soup for the Soul is deliberately and willfully attempting to lure consumers into buying their soup based on a false affiliation with Campbell, the soup maker’s complaint says. Campbell has used its trademark and trade dresses for over 100 years, and Chicken Soup for the Soul is now attempting to trade on the fame and goodwill Campbell has built up in that time, according to the complaint. To continue reading, click here: Chicken Soup For The Soul Accused Of Infringing Campbell Trademark

sandwich-footlong.jpgIPNews® – The owners of Washington, D.C.’s legendary Wisemiller’s Grocery and Deli sued a neighboring pizza parlor last month for ripping off its trademark name, logo and menu design.

Wisemiller’s, affectionately known to its customers as Wisey’s, called Davar Ashgrizzadeh’s renaming of his Cafe Romeo’s pizzeria to “Wiseats” a futile effort to promote its markedly inferior food offerings. The pizzeria’s actions present an “exceptionally blatant” case of intentional trademark infringement and unfair competition, the complaint filed in September says. To continue reading, click: DC Deli Sues Rival Pizzeria For Trademark Infringement

solar panel.jpgIPNews® – Texas Instruments Inc. was granted a new patent on Tuesday covering a mode of measuring the performance of an array of solar energy panels with a range of sensors.

U.S. Patent Number 8,289,183, titled “System and method for solar panel array analysis,” describes a system and method for monitoring performance of one or more solar panels in a photovoltaic array, using a number of sensors configured to measure an output of individual solar panels. The system will allow greater efficiency in the operation and energy production of any given solar array, according to the patent description. To continue reading, click: TI Wins Patent For Method Of Keeping Tabs On Solar Panel Performance