The so-called smartphone wars waged over the last three years have been viewed as everything from the bane of the U.S. patent system to perhaps the best evidence of its value. One indisputable result of these highly-publicized legal battles, however, is the impact they are currently having on IP management strategies employed by firms in every corner of the market.

Harvard Law School professor Lawrence Lessig is one of today's preeminent thinkers in the field of digital copyright enforcement. Now his academic and legal knowledge will be put to practical use as Lessig goes on the offensive against an Australian music publisher which previously issued a takedown request regarding one of the professor's lectures posted on YouTube.

Indianapolis-based pharmaceutical manufacturer Eli Lilly and Company has had to weather a variety of foreign and domestic intellectual property controversies in recent weeks. After reconciling a trade secrets dispute involving a Chinese business partner earlier in the month, the firm must now defend the validity of a patent covering its second-best-selling drug.

Indianapolis-based global pharmaceutical manufacturer Eli Lilly and Company was recently the beneficiary of China's revitalized intellectual property enforcement protocols. Earlier this month, a Shanghai court granted a ban on trade secret circulation in the case of a former Lilly affiliate who had breached their pre-employment non-disclosure agreement.

Victoria Espinel, the White House's first dedicated intellectual property enforcement coordinator, stepped down from her post late last week. As the search begins for a permanent replacement, public and private sector colleagues have been reflecting on Espinel's legacy.

Trade secrets do not always attract the same level of executive attention as separate intellectual assets, but mismanaging these sensitive materials can prove just as costly. Companies should revisit how they classify and protect their trade secrets to help mitigate the potential impact of any future misappropriation. 

Pharmaceutical manufacturers from around the world are intent on establishing what could be a pivotal foothold in the emerging market of India. However, recent events have highlighted a variety of frustrations faced by foreign drugmakers seeking the intellectual property protections their business demands.

Since its introduction to the U.S. Senate floor in 1934, gross domestic product has been one of the most trusted measurements of a nation's macroeconomic health. Yet as the business models which populate the country's economy have expanded and evolved in the interceding 80 years, critics have started to question the validity of the metric.

The Advisory Council for the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has been a vital source of knowledge exchange and dissemination as it relates to clarifying and streamlining judicial procedures. In its latest model order, the council has turned an eye toward patent claims and prior art in an effort to further reduce the administrative burden on intellectual property litigants and courts.

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.