Apollon - 22/5/12 - 09:00 - User-driven Open Innovation Ecosystems
Respect Intellectual Property When Creating Your Web Site - IP frontline
1. Respect Intellectual Property When Creating Your Web Site Page 1 of 2
Printed: 12/1/2009
Respect Intellectual Property When Creating Your Web Site
Jeffrey A. Travis
date: Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Web sites are your first online impression to a client. This is why it is so important to
make sure you craft your site intelligently, with foresight that will avoid unwelcome
attention that can come from infringing on someone else’s intellectual property.
Be aware of the types of intellectual property
There are four types of intellectual property: patents, copyrights, trademarks and
trade secrets.
Trademarks and copyrights are the two that usually get Web site owners into the most trouble.
Trademark infringement can be found if you use a competitor’s mark in a way that is likely to confuse a consumer as
to the source of your goods/services with theirs. For copyrights, infringement occurs if you copy someone else’s work
exactly or in a way that is substantially similar to the original.
As you develop your Web site, be strategic with development.
Too many times business owners sign agreements with Web site development companies and are burned.
When having someone develop your Web site:
• Clearly define the price of the development process;
• Create a staggered payment plan based on design and development goals;
• Define all the features before you begin (avoid “feature creep”);
• Have a date certain for development goals;
• Retain all rights to intellectual property resulting from the development of your Web site;
• Retain the ability to access all Web site source code;
• Clearly identify the source of all content.
Be cautious about content
You are responsible for the content on your site. If a developer uses someone else’s protected work on your Web
site, you can be held liable. It is best if you have someone create original content for you. If this is not possible,
make sure freely distributed works are used or modified for your use. Also, make sure that issues relating to who is
responsible for any unlawful use are clearly addressed in the development agreement.
Have an appropriate “terms of service” and privacy policy. At a minimum, ensure you are taking advantage of all the
safe harbor benefits of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act and other applicable statutes.
Be smart about promotion
You can promote your Web site a number of ways. Most ways are perfectly OK. However, some online
advertisements have been found to be infringing. For example, using a competitor’s name in a Meta tag (keywords
placed in the HTML of a Web page and transparent to a visitor) may be infringing, making the offender liable.
Another problem is using a competitor’s protected name in a “sponsored” advertisement. These are paid keywords
through search engines that will cause your ad to appear on a search page.
http://www.cafezine.com/printtemplate.asp?id=23224 1/12/2009