On Nov. 14, Largan Precision Co. filed a complaint in U.S. federal court in San Diego seeking damages for alleged patent infringement by Samsung Electronics Co. Largan is alleging Samsung infringed six of its imaging lens patents in the Galaxy Note and S series smartphones. Largan is additionally claiming the infringement was intentional, and is asking the court to triple any damages rewarded as a result. Largan seeks an order barring use of its technology, as well as a halt to U.S. imports of Samsung products that infringe its patents, according to Bloomberg.

The copyright industries contributed $1 trillion to the U.S. GDP and accounted for 6.5 percent of the nation's economy in 2012, according to a new study by the International Intellectual Property Alliance. This is a new high for the economic contributions of these industries to the U.S. economy.

Google's book search allows users to view excerpts of scanned books relevant to their query on the search engine. When it began in 2004, the project was controversial even in its infancy. However, crucially, users cannot see the entire text of a book, even though the whole work is scanned. The search engine also provides links to download or purchase physical copies of the work legitimately. Some publishers have agreements with Google to sell ebooks through the Google Play store, which sells apps and books on several devices. 

According to Fred Vogelstein's new book "Dogfight: How Apple and Google Went to War and Started a Revolution," Apple is spending around $200 million each year fighting patent lawsuits against Android. The estimate comes from an attorney who has worked on such cases. According to Business Insider, Vogelstein's book reports Apple has 300 attorneys at four law firms who work on Android pursuits nearly full-time.

According to The Financial Times, the growing importance and visibility of intellectual property management in the media and business worlds has led many top law schools to offer a specialization or extra courses in intellectual property law. Though the job market for law school graduates has suffered recently, there is still strong demand for lawyers who understand patent law, according to the source.

Andrew Paul Leonard is a professional photographer whose preferred subject matter is microscopic. He photographs using a scanning electron microscope, or SEM. In 1995, Leonard photographed human bone marrow stem cells.

Telecom giant Nortel went bankrupt in 2009 and auctioned off its patent portfolio. Though Google tried to acquire it, ultimately the bidding escalated to a point where the winner turned out to be a consortium of tech giants, currently operating as Rockstar. The companies involved in purchasing the patents from Nortel are Microsoft, Apple, RIM, Ericsson and Sony. At the end of October, Rockstar filed suits against Google and seven manufacturers of Android phones, claiming they had infringed various patents.

According to The Wall Street Journal, StemCells, Inc announced its acquisition of a portfolio of U.S. and Canadian patents. Previously, the company had held an exclusive worldwide license to the patents in question. Broadly considered, the portfolio covers technologies for the manufacture and proliferation of purified populations of human neural stem cells, as well as their therapeutic and drug discovery uses.

A letter sent to the leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate judiciary committees requests legislation to combat patent assertion entities. The signatories to the letter include the Computer & Communications Industry Association, National Retail Federation, National Grocers Association, American Gaming Association, Printing Industries of America and the American Hotel and Lodging Association.

The World Intellectual Property Organization Standing Committee on the Law of Trademarks, Industrial Designs, and Geographical Indications was unable to reach a tenable conclusion for an industrial design treaty during the WIPO general assembly earlier this year. It is convening again from Nov. 4 through Nov. 8 to discuss the matter further.