Possible Rules Patent?

[mudbunny]

I work at the Canadian Intellectual Property Office. Here are the applicable Canadian Laws on Patents as they refer to games:

According to Canadian Patent laws:

A method for playing a game with a gaming apparatus or article is only patentable when the apparatus or article is new and inventive, or the apparatus or article is being used for a new and non-analogous use.

A new arrangement of printed or design matter may form the subject matter of a patent if it performs a mechanical function or purpose in consequence of use 58. [...] If the novelty lies solely in the meaning of the printed words or the aesthetic appeal of the printed or design
matter, it is not considered patentable subject matter. Such matter is also referred to as nonfunctional descriptive matter.

A method of playing a board game or a game involving cards is considered to be patentable subject matter if the game board or cards are themselves novel and inventive. This can occur if the board or cards bear a new arrangement or design that provides some inventive functional use.
​

So, new rules for using the same thing are *not* patentable.

 

[Ranger REG]

The problem is (in my mind, and I'm not a lawyer) that is that we know that Gary Gygax basicly took wargame rules and modified them for fantasy use. I would hate to see the original creators of those games come out of the woodwork to sue WOTC. I'm not sure that Gary's original work would stand up in a patent court. And since all other works derive from that work, there could be problems down the road.

Meh. He only took the concept. AFAIC, if there is a wargame patent, it is probably expired by now.

As I said before, Patent is the only IP that is short-lived.

Copyright comes second, last long as 40-60 years after the original author passed away.

Trademark is forever, so long you vigilantly protect it as your own.

 

[Mistwell]

Meh. He only took the concept. AFAIC, if there is a wargame patent, it is probably expired by now.

As I said before, Patent is the only IP that is short-lived.

Copyright comes second, last long as 40-60 years after the original author passed away.

Trademark is forever, so long you vigilantly protect it as your own.

Trademarks must be renewed as well.

 

[Ranger REG]

Trademarks must be renewed as well.

Really?

Cite your source on how long a trademark last before you must renew?

 

[The Little Raven]

Really?

Cite your source on how long a trademark last before you must renew?

Here's something.

All jurisdictions with a mature trademark registration system provide a mechanism for removal in the event of such non use, which is usually a period of either three or five years. The intention to use a trademark can be proven by a wide range of acts as shown in the Wooly Bull and Ashton v Harlee cases.

In the U.S., failure to use a trademark for this period of time, aside from the corresponding impact on product quality, will result in abandonment of the mark, whereby any party may use the mark. An abandoned mark is not irrevocably in the public domain, but may instead be re-registered by any party which has re-established exclusive and active use, and must be associated or linked with the original mark owner. Further, if a court rules that a trademark has become "generic" through common use (such that the mark no longer performs the essential trademark function and the average consumer no longer considers that exclusive rights attach to it), the corresponding registration may also be ruled invalid.

 

[Mistwell]

Really?

Cite your source on how long a trademark last before you must renew?

You file a "Continuous Use Form" after 5 years. After a 10 year period, you renew your trademark. See USPTO.

 

[Ranger REG]

It still doesn't say anything about renewing.

It only says that if a trademark is not used for 3-5 years, it is considered abandoned and any party can use it.

I assume the re-registering refers to USPTO, but not all trademarks -- as long it is still being used by their respective owners -- are registered with USPTO.

 

[Mistwell]

It still doesn't say anything about renewing.

It only says that if a trademark is not used for 3-5 years, it is considered abandoned and any party can use it.

I assume the re-registering refers to USPTO, but not all trademarks -- as long it is still being used by their respective owners -- are registered with USPTO.

Do I really need to cite you the specific statute clause? Sigh...

Here, I will do this the easy way:

http://www.uspto.gov/main/faq/index.html

How long does a trademark registration last?

For a trademark registration to remain valid, an Affidavit of Use (Section 8 Affidavit) must be filed: (1) between the fifth and sixth year following registration, and (2) within the year before the end of every ten-year period after the date of registration. The registrant may file the affidavit within a grace period of six months after the end of the sixth or tenth year, with payment of an additional fee. The registrant must also file a Section 9 renewal application within the year before the expiration date of a registration, or within a grace period of six months after the expiration date, with payment of an additional fee. Assuming that affidavit of use is timely filed, registrations granted PRIOR to November 16, 1989 have a 20-year term, and registrations granted on or after November 16, 1989 have a 10-year term. This is also true for the renewal periods; renewals granted PRIOR to November 16, 1989 have a 20-year term, and renewals granted on or after November 16, 1989 have a 10-year term.

Yes, this is USPTO. I assume that's what we were discussing, since "renew" implies some place you are renewing it with. There are of course common law trademark rights, but given they are much weaker than registration, I wouldn't suggest folks go that route.

As for outside the US, it depends on the jurisdiction.

 

[apoptosis]

Do I really need to cite you the specific statute clause? Sigh...

Here, I will do this the easy way:

http://www.uspto.gov/main/faq/index.html



Yes, this is USPTO. I assume that's what we were discussing, since "renew" implies some place you are renewing it with. There are of course common law trademark rights, but given they are much weaker than registration, I wouldn't suggest folks go that route.

As for outside the US, it depends on the jurisdiction.

Can you extend general patents like you can with drug patents (what I am more familiar with)?

 

[Mistwell]

Can you extend general patents like you can with drug patents (what I am more familiar with)?

I don't know. While I practice some intellectual property, I don't handle patents. I know just enough to know who the good patent attorneys are in my region, and how complex the issues are, and when to refer someone out.

Which is why I was saying earlier that, while this can be fun to debate, nobody will really be able to answer the questions involved unless they are experienced patent attorneys. I've sat at a conference room table with multiple experienced patent attorneys discussing whether or not something can be patented, and how enforceable the patent would be, with none of the attorneys agreeing with each other. And that was over a patent issue less complex than the one raised in this thread.