[Jewelry making - Article 00038] - Re: [Orchid] Copyright my line?

[James White]

========[ Invite a Friend - http://www.ganoksin.com/invite.htm  ]========

    You can read my www.idearights.com web site and the info it links to
    but the bottom line is you need to consult with a good IP attorney.
    Copyright only applies to artistic expression in a "fixed form" in
    the case of jewelry---yours may not apply if it is the buyer that
    creates the "fixed" form. Copyright is automatic but you can also
    register it. You still must enforce it yourself. There might also be
    some question whether it applies since your stuff includes further
    "expression" by the buyer. 

    Concepts aren't patentable subject matter. But if you have a
    specific enough embodiment or process and utility then maybe a
    utility patent is appropriate. The odds of a design patent being of
    any value when your parts have interconnecting functionality that
    allows buyer selection are, I would guess, pretty low since design
    patents only protect "ornamental design" AS SHOWN in the issued
    design patent. Business methods of sufficient novelty and
    non-obviousness are, in fact, patentable but again you must enforce
    the patent yourself. 

    And, yes, China is a problem though they are a party to the major
    international copyright conventions (Berne and Paris but not WCT
    yet). However many of their people believe getting away with
    violating the law is OK though that is slowly changing as the
    government is improving efforts at enforcement. 

James E. White
Inventor, Marketer, and Author of "Will It Sell? How to Determine If
Your Invention Is Profitably Marketable (Before Wasting Money on a
Patent)"  Info Sites:   www.willitsell.com    www.inventorhome.com,
www.idearights.com www.taletyano.com www.booksforinventors.com

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