978-0077733711 Chapter 8 Solution Manual

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Chapter 08 – Intellectual Property and Unfair Competition

V. ANSWERS TO PROBLEMS AND PROBLEM CASES

1. The defendant was correct. This invention was obvious, according to the Supreme Court.

Therefore, the invention failed the nonobviousness requirement—meaning that the patent was

2. Koons succeeded on the fair use defense. The Second Circuit held that Koons’ critical and

artistic purpose rendered his painting “transformative.” The court found additional

justification in Koons’ assertion that the use of an existing image advanced his satirical

3. MasterCard sued for trademark infringement and dilution and for copyright infringement. In

the trademark aspects of his case, MasterCard was seeking to enforce its rights to stop, and

obtain monetary damages for, uses that allegedly amounted to infringement or dilution of the

“Priceless” trademark. In the copyright aspect of the case, MasterCard sought to enforce its

4. The Court held that color is registrable if the applicant proves secondary meaning in regard to

it. In other words, the applicant must prove that it has used the mark (in this instance, the

color) long enough and extensively enough that the relevant public has come to associate the

5. Yes. The “Surfvivor” mark was “suggestive,” and therefore worthy of some intermediate

level of protection. But the “Surfvivor” and Survivor marks are only aurally similar, not

6. Yes. The Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the district court’s issuance of a

preliminary injunction in favor of North Atlantic Instruments (NAI). The Second Circuit

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Chapter 08 – Intellectual Property and Unfair Competition

concluded that the list of client contacts was indeed a trade secret belonging to NAI and that

Haber’s use and disclosure of the client contact list after he left NAI involved a breach of the

7. Although business methods can sometimes be patented, this particular one was not eligible

8. Vuitton lost its trademark infringement claim and its trademark dilution claim. The

infringement claim failed because there was no likelihood of confusion. Reasonable

9. No. Reversing the trial court’s decision, the Georgia Court of Appeals held that the

homeowners association was not liable to the developer for interference with the contracts

between the developer and the lot purchasers because the association was not a stranger to the

10. Google successfully invoked the fair use defense. In applying the fair use factors, the court

placed heavy emphasis on the transformative purpose associated with Google’s use of the

11. Puffery. “America’s Favorite Pasta” does not stand for a discrete or measurable fact.

“Favorite” essentially means “well-liked,” a subjective descriptor. “America” does not mean

12. The defendants were liable for inducing patent infringement. The Supreme Court held that

inducement liability requires a showing that the defendants knew the induced acts would

constitute patent infringement. The Court went on to hold, however, that the doctrine of

willful blindness can be used as a way of satisfying the knowledge element. The Court

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Chapter 08 – Intellectual Property and Unfair Competition

13. Colting argued that the fair use defense should protect him against liability. A federal district

court, however, issued a preliminary injunction in favor of Salinger and thereby barred

distribution of Colting’s novel in the United States. Although it later vacated the preliminary

injunction, the Second Circuit issued an opinion indicating, after relatively brief analysis, that

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manner. This document may not be copied, scanned, duplicated, forwarded, distributed, or posted on a website, in whole or part.