Law 421

Submitted By ChloeGort
Words: 572
Pages: 3

Article Review
Law/421

E-Business has brought many opportunities to the world that would have never been afforded. Businesses are able to reach customers from all over the world which presents substantially more potential than their immediate neighborhood. It goes without saying that in such a competitive environment, it is vital that these businesses are prepared to protect the property they make available on the web. The future of the business will depend on how they handle the pressure of keeping costs low, while still remaining in tune with the ever changing technology we have today.

The article I chose is titled Intellectual Property and was published in 2009in the New York Times. The paper discussed the fear that presents itself within the world of small business owners when the topic of intellectual property is brought up. Some see it as an insurmountable expense that they are unable to take on. This becomes very unfortunate when they do not take the steps needed to protect their property and it is stolen by a competitor and they are left with nothing to show for it.

A small business owner was highlighted in the article who had learned that a competitor had launched a product that was similar to the look and feel of his own. This owner was fortunate enough to have taken the steps to protect his products by way of trademarks, web addresses and trade dress. Since the protections were put into place, the business owner was able to force the competitor to pull their product off of the shelves. Another business owner learned that although she secured a patent, it did not protect her from having the web address taken before she could secure it for her business. Depending on the type of business that is owned, it might prove beneficial to obtain these web addresses for each country. As mentioned previously, a great deal of which protections are chosen will depend on the type of business that is being conducted and what the business model dictates. For example, if a company places a copyright on their work, it will protect them if their original work from being copied without their permission. In order for a company to become