The threats posed by pay-for-delay patent strategies were thrust into the spotlight last month as the U.S. Federal Trade Commission authorized antitrust investigators to more closely examine these controversial business practices. A new study released by two nonprofit public interest groups is now adding depth to the conversation, presenting objective evidence for the financial burden brand name drug manufacturers are imposing on consumers.

Trademarks typically garner the most pop culture attention among the major intellectual asset categories, but that is not to say the processes surrounding their registration and enforcement are always readily understood. For companies or sole proprietors wondering when the time is right to formally register their mark, there are several subtle factors to consider.

Don Mattrick, former president of Microsoft's interactive entertainment division, surprised many earlier in the month with his announcement that he would be leaving the firm to assume a new role as the chief executive officer for struggling social gaming company Zynga. As Mattrick begins his transition, industry observers expect his historical familiarity with intellectual property management to serve his future employer well.

The General Services Administration, which directs the procurement of federal office space, indefinitely canceled its plans to find a permanent home for the USPTO's Silicon Valley satellite location. It remains to be seen whether the pressure imposed by local legislators and industrial leaders in the coming weeks will be enough to convince federal officials to stretch slim budgets in the name of enabling procedural efficiency and business innovation.

Earlier this month, the World Intellectual Property Organization, INSEAD and Cornell University jointly released the 2013 edition of their Global Innovation Index. One of the most significant themes highlighted in the latest iteration of the study was the sheer diversity of strategies employed by countries attempting to better themselves in the innovation economy.

The concept of copyright is based on the notion that creators of an original work are entitled to equitable compensation for their production, and consumers are entitled to an authentic version of that good. But in the complicated climate of literary copyrights, traditional intellectual property protection may actually be suppressing the long-term availability and consumption of writers' works.

As climate change research advocates in and out of government offices request stricter transparency for energy and chemical companies, business directors are pushing back with concerns that their continuous disclosure of proprietary processes may violate fundamental trade secrets management principles. These tensions were recently exacerbated by discussion of a potential Environmental Protection Agency proposal which would require companies to publicly release information relating to the exact methods by which the businesses calculate greenhouse gas emissions.

The logistics of trade secrets management are rarely discussed in open forums, and often times their only recognizable manifestations lie buried in the fine print of non-disclosure agreements. But as both private and public sector misappropriations come to light, executives are seeking smarter ways to detect when their proprietary inventions may be at risk.

The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers' (ICANN) Board of Directors recently approved a new domain name registrant accreditation process which could be a valuable deterrent to the scourge of online piracy and copyright infringement.

Fresenius Medical Care and Baxter International have been involved in a series of infringement disputes over the last decade concerning the features of dialysis machines produced by each company. Litigation between the two sides may be nearing its end after a unique application of the USPTO's post-grant review process.