Intellectual Property Law

Did the Oracle Ever Speak of The Balance?

By thomason

If you?ve been to Delphi, and stood at the ruins of Oracle, looking off toward the valley, wondering whether it lies at the line between the cosmological, the meta- and the physical, hinged over a sorcerer?s stone, and not far from the touristical, then you must?ve been experiencing a lot of demestica on that trip.  None of some of the mysteries at the Oracle of Delphi have been recreated at the Oracle of Silicon Valley, but still, there is there some thirst for the unknown.

Oracle entrepreneur and yachtsman Larry Ellison had his name invoked in a court proceeding, reported out of NYC, in which the Master & Commander of the Alinghi team alleges that a spy, (allegedly) from Adm. Ellison?s yacht team, tried ?to illegally break into facilities to take photographs and secure information? about the design of the vessel that the Alinghi team will enter in the 2011 America?s Cup.  The interloper was arrested after Alinghi employees saw him scouting around and photographing in the area where they are building their vessel.

Do boat-builders have common law IP rights; or, did Justice S.D. O?Connor rule those out in Bonito Boats?  Perhaps the billionaires, who plan to challenge for the America?s Cup, have their own take on J. O?Connor?s remark that our laws embody a ?recognition that imitation and refinement through imitation are both necessary to invention itself and the very lifeblood of a competitive economy.?

Full post as published by ISinIP on May 15, 2009 (boomark / email).