United States Intellectual Property Organization?: Curing a Fractured Administrative Structure

Patent Law Blog (Patently-O):
By Dennis Crouch
Most operating businesses that rely on intellectual property (IP) rights do not focus on a single form of rights but instead take a layered approach that includes patent law along with trademark, copyright, contractual limitations, and design rights, for instance. Each form of IP has weak points and overlapping coverage provides a greater level of certainty that any underlying market value can be protected.  Of course, overlapping rights create difficulties for users that rely upon the public domain and fair use. The bulk of governmental money spent on administering intellectual property rights goes through the US Patent & Trademark Office (PTO) — an executive agency housed within the Department of Commerce.  Although the PTO only administrates patent and trademark issues, the Director of the USPTO also serves as the Undersecretary of Commerce in charge of Intellectual Property and has the role of advising the President and other federal agencies on all aspects of intellectual property – including copyright law.  Of late, this role is shared somewhat with the White House Office of the U.S. Intellectual Property Enforcement Coordinator….
Whither the Copyright Office: There is a clear structural reason why the President and executive agencies cannot rely on the US Copyright Office for advice about copyright law.  The Copyright Office is housed within the Library of Congress, which itself is managed by Congress rather than the President.  Thus the US Copyright Office does not officially represent the Administration or shape Administration policy.  This is an odd setup — especially with the rising and overlapping market role for intellectual property rights.  From a theoretical standpoint, it is unclear whether the fractured administrative structure leads to rights that are either too strong or too weak.  What we can tell is that the structure leads to a lack of coordination in administration of the various IP systems within the US.
In his

Published:
26.01.12
Category:
IP News