Posts by Kenneth Johnson

An ancient stock certificate found in a drawer after someone dies; selling shares that grandma gave us a long time ago; investment paperwork lost in a move. The stories all seem different, but in each case the question is the same — what has happened to a company since these shares of stock were purchased?

November 8 is fast approaching, and with it the Intellectual Property day at SIBL, featuring representatives from the United States Patent and Trademark Office. This seems like a good opportunity to recommend one of the Library's best sources for information about trademarks, Stephen Elias and Richard Stim's Nolo book Trademark — Legal Care for Your Business and Product Name.

In polite conversation, it is unusual for people to talk about taxes. In other situations, they may be mentioned or discussed. And as we know, they are frequently a topic for political rants and news.

Those who take an interest in patents will have heard by now; the U.S. has a new patent law, the "Leahy-Smith America Invents Act." It's too early to tell whether the changes that will take place as a result will be revolutionary or not; and for that I await the views of the experts. But it is worthwhile taking note of these recent patent law amendments in anticipation of the visit to SIBL by the USPTO on November 8.

We're just starting to get the word out — November 8, 2011 will be a day to explore Intellectual Property protection when the Science, Industry and Business Library hosts a visit from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Starting a business? Take my word for it — you don't need a business plan. Oh, and while we're at it, I have a nice bridge I can let you have at a very good price...

Lurid.
Glint of an axe falling.
Streams of red.
Flash of orange.
Jagged slashes.

First some breaking news! The word has come down from the US Patent and Trademark Office. The new name of the Patent and Trademark Depository Libraries will be Patent and Trademark Resource Centers. The actual name change will be official as of October 1st. Although as yet no festivities are planned, we look forward, both before and after the change, to helping you with your Patent and Trademark research here at SIBL.

What do Trademark Examiners do? No — this is not a trick question. They do examine applications for trademark registrations.

I'm hesitant to use the word easy; things easy to do don't usually have to be identified, and when things aren't all that easy, it's not good to suggest they are. But, Patent Searching Made Easy is the title of a Nolo Press book by David Hitchcock (currently available here at SIBL in its fifth edition), and I'm going to exploit an opportunity to write a little about both this book and patent searching.

Perhaps one of the more quaint job titles in the U.S. Federal government, the Register of Copyrights is not exactly descriptive of the duties involved. It's not about stamping books and other works submitted for registration. Instead, it's all about policy: studies, analysis and advice to Congress and providing technical expertise and assistance to various agencies in the Federal Government and other countries.

A little while ago, I gave a presentation at a session for FastTrac® GrowthVenture™. These sessions have to be held outside the Library, and they're very brief with lots of information to cover, so there's no chance to do a hands-on demonstration. This time I was told by one of the participants that she had been to visit us here at SIBL, but wasn't able to find current industry information in her business area, cleaning services.

No, no, no ... you can't try them on for size! They're not that kind of jacket — they're not clothing at all. They are, however, the most frequently asked for resource for New York State legislative history here at SIBL.

Frederic loves a paradox. Me, I like to read detective and suspense fiction every once in a while, but abhor a real mystery — at least one that isn't easy for me to solve. With this one I've hit a dead end and can't think of a better way to find someone to carry this forward than to post it here. This document is in one of the Patent Pamphlet Volumes in SIBL's collection. Its title says: Republique D'Hayti : Loi Sur les Patentes. But I don't believe it's about patents (patents for inventions, at any rate). Can anyone tell me what this document is?

It's already been a couple of months since I and a colleague attended a morning of presentations by budding entrepreneurs finishing up their session of FastTrac® NewVenture™. Two weeks before that event my colleague and I did a presentation here at SIBL for them - our Market Research and library resources "boot camp". Now we had a great opportunity to see for ourselves how, and to what extent, these folks have used our SIBL resources to help create a five minute "pitch" of their businesses.

One premise of the U.S. patent system, and of most of the other large established patent systems in the world, is you can only patent something once. Too late, then, for the wheel; but for the better, improved wheel a patenting opportunity awaits. Of course, how do you find out if someone beat you to it? Or, in the language of patent experts, how do you find the prior art?

This May is a month of celebration here at NYPL. A 100 year birthday for the Library’s landmark Stephen A. Schwarzman Building on Fifth Avenue and 42nd Street, and here at SIBL, we mark 15 years of operation. As appropriate for 100 years, NYPL will focus on many of its incredible research collections in the new exhibition Celebrating 100 Years, which will open May 14. On a smaller scale, this might be a good opportunity to mention SIBL's extensive collection of trade and professional journals.

Since 1871, the United States Patent Office (now the Patent and Trademark Office) has partnered with libraries (including a predecessor to NYPL) in different parts of the United States, creating depositories of patents and trademarks so local inventors and businesspeople can conveniently search these documents in anticipation of their own filings or registrations. For the last several years there have been around 80 to 85 Patent and Trademark Depository Libraries (PTDLs) throughout the country. Soon there will be none.... Why?

So you have your menu—and now need to choose which form of IP protection to use for your bottle or other idea. Of course if you have all the time and money in the world, maybe you can do it all. But since the question really is about business, it's important to consider what works for you before starting the final processes to protect your IP.

Many thanks to David Barstow for his presentation here at SIBL on March 16th for our celebration of Freedom of Information Day. As a kind of wrap-up for this year's event I wanted to offer, especially for those who were not able to attend, highlights of his lecture.