How to protect your trade secrets? 🎯 IP Management Pulse #27

Many IP experts in the IP community at I3PM, the HTB-EPO initiative, and other global IP offices and institutions in national and regional innovation systems have asked Prof. Dr. Alexander Wurzer: “Where can you be sure not to miss any important IP management content?” In fact, you have to follow a number of interesting feeds to really keep up with the global developments around IP management. To make this easier he decided to offer his own personal newsletter for IP management. Here, you can find the last issues in the archive and also subscribe. A fresh read with all important IP Management content will be sent to the subscribers every second Thursday at 7:00 (CET), so that they can start the day informed.

The next Newsletter will cover the following topics:

Trade Secret Protection

In a landmark case that’s sending shockwaves through the renewable energy sector, a jury has awarded Propel Fuels a staggering $605 million in damages against energy giant Phillips 66 for trade secret theft. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐭, 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐮𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐟𝐭, 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐮𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲’𝐬 𝐟𝐚𝐬𝐭-𝐩𝐚𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝.

Patents in the Chemical Industry

The chemical industry faces challenges in protecting its innovations. Crucial questions regarding intellectual property (IP) in this sector include filing strategies, disclosure strategies, drafting, interpretation, cost management, and value demonstration. It is important for market success to navigate those IP issues effectively.

Copyrights for Cover Songs on YouTube

What role does copyright play when covering songs? There is e.g. a need for mechanical and sync licenses when recording and sharing covers online. Furthermore, with cover songs it is important to respect copyright and at the same time encourage aspiring musicians to showcase their talent and connect with their audience through covers.

Reluctance to Trade Secret Management

What is the “poacher turned gamekeeper” phenomenon? It emphasizes the importance of protecting valuable trade secrets, even if it means some additional effort. By managing trade secrets, businesses can safeguard their competitive advantage and foster innovation.

Trademarks for Food and Beverages

Taiwan’s IP Office rejected Monster Energy’s opposition against a trademark with Chinese characters and flaming red stripes, finding low visual similarity to Monster’s “M claw” logo and insufficient evidence of the logo’s fame or harm. This decision highlights the importance of distinctiveness and strong evidence in trademark disputes.

New 🔗dIPlex entry: IP Strategy

An IP strategy is a roadmap that outlines how a business will generate, manage, and leverage its intellectual property (IP) assets. These assets can include patents, trademarks, designs, and copyrights. A strong IP strategy is crucial for businesses of all sizes because it can provide a significant competitive advantage.

New 🔗dIPlex entry: IP Valuation

IP valuation is the process of estimating the economic value of intangible assets, such as patents, trademarks, copyrights, and trade secrets. It’s crucial for businesses to understand the value of their intellectual property (IP) for various reasons, including investment decisions, mergers and acquisitions, licensing agreements, and financial reporting.

Whom to follow

Matome Amos is a patent professional and founding member at Patent Business Solutions (Pty) Ltd. He is passionate about helping companies strategically leverage their patents to generate revenue and achieve business goals and shares many valuable resources on his channel. He also raises awareness for intellectual property by supporting the IP Business Academy as an ambassador.

Anatol Heib from the Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IGE) is passionate about IP protection and education. With a Master’s in Communication Management and specialization in IP law, he shares insights on social media and at events like Startup Nights. He also supports the IP Business Academy as an ambassador.

AI UDRP panelist: High-risk classification by the EU AI act

Since 1999, domain name disputes have been effectively solved under the Uniform Domain Name Dispute Resolution Policy (the “Policy” or “UDRP”) a procedure inspired in arbitration, which can be perceived as a predictable process. This article seeks to navigate into this question: What is the impact of AI in out-of-court procedures in the European Union? Is it possible to decide domain name disputes through the use of AI?

Humanoid Robotics IP Strategies – Exploring China’s Government Policies and Market Opportunities: New research project at the MIPLM

The Chinese humanoid robotics industry is rapidly evolving, driven by technological advancements, market dynamics, and strong government support. This thesis explores the patent strategies of leading companies in the field, such as UBTECH Robotics, Xiaomi, CloudMinds, and Tesla (China), analysing how they leverage intellectual property (IP) to secure competitive advantages, drive innovation, and position themselves globally.

Digital Transformation of Finance

Cryptocurrency ownership surged in 2024, with 562 million people (6.8% of the global population) now holding digital assets. Driven by Bitcoin’s price surge and favorable regulations, global ownership grew 33% in just one year, indicating rising investor confidence across all regions.

With the increased use of cryptocurrency also mobile payment solutions are on the rise. This article compares the IP strategies for mobile payment solutions through the lens of two FinTech giants: Apple Pay and Alipay.

Timing of Entry Strategies

An important aspect of a successful innovation strategy is the right timing of the market entry of the product or service. Here, early and late entries have both advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, a premature entry can be as devastating as a too late entry, where the market is already occupied by the quicker competitors.