10/25 - Update Report

Calendar

Character Redesign

"Hero" Shots

[Career Services] Legally Protect Your Work

Jack Shelton - International Sales Lawyer

Laws of Copyright
Exclusive rights to:

• reproduce artwork
• create derivative works
• distribute copies
• perform work publicly
• showcase work publicly
• perform work publicly by digital audio (sound only)

Creation Copyright 

• Original work (modicum of creativity)
• Tangible medium

Can't Copyright

• Single words
• Short phrases
• names
• list ingredients
• list of names
• band names
• but you can Trademark

Joint Works

• % share of work
• no agreement to contrary, partner can grant non-exclusive licenses in copyright to third parties without other partner's permission

Work for Hire

• Person who hires owns copyright
• Artist doesn't own copyright
• employee
• contractor

Not for hire? Can sell intellectual property!

• transfer ownership as a gift, a sale, or succession
• in signed writing

License

• Permission to use work 
• Express v implied
• Exclusive (signed writing) v Non-exclusive

Copyright stays as long as the author is alive +70 years

Don't need to register for copyrights... rights.

• bUT registration = benefit
• register before infringement
• attornery's fees and statutory damages covered

Trademark / Service Marks

• Mark that identifies your business as source of service or good
• Prevention from market place

Common Law Trademark - start using mark in commerce trademark

Lanham Act Trademark - register US patent and Trademark office

Strength of Trademark

• Generic (no.)
• Descriptive
• Suggestive
• Arbitrary and Fanciful (strongest)

Trademark

• Domestic protection
• registered = valid
• owner listed = true owner
• not abandoned

Collaboration Agreements

• Contract in writing
• emails are okay, but must express content to terms
• Author's responsibilities
• specific role
• timeline of roles
• obligated to find buyers/licenses
• responsible for distributions and acceptance
• active sentences, not passive
• Rights of each author
• grant non-exclusive licenses?
• credit given how?
• % revenue received?
• Dishonors contract, what now?
• Terminate contract, what are the resulting rights/liabilities?

Revised Pitch Imagery

Pitch Imagery

 

[Career Services] Turn Your Idea Into a Business

Rory Thomas – Guest Speaker – Small Business Dev.

            Americans want to work for themselves

                        By year 2020, 4/10 Americans self employed

Questions to consider:

            How will business affect your family?

            Are you willing to risk personal assets?

            Are you a self-starter/decision maker?

            Can you organize and plan?

            What skills and experience do you have for the business?

            Is the product something that the customer wants/needs?

Start young – a lot of time spent making a business (can put strain on relationships)

Smartstartmem.com – lists requirements for aspiring bus. owners

PROS AND CONS FOR LICENSING

            Lack of customers/publicity

                        No need for bus. license if less than $4k

            Minimal activity bus. license

                        Earn to $10k

                        If not renewed, dissolves away

SBA – fed agency to aid, counsel, assist, protect small businesses

            Largest small business assistance program

95% of the human population are outside of the USA

            identify market (even consider outside the country!)

tsbdc.org – resources

tsbdctraining.org – free online training

sbdcnet.org

gybo.com – google website

liveplan

50% of small businesses fail in 5 years, 80% fail within 10 years

            (because of lack of planning)

Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance

Marketing

            Product?

            Price?

            Place?

            Promotion?

SOLE PROPIERTORSHIP

            One owner

            Complete control

            Easy to form and operate

            Easy tax prep
            Pass through entity

                        Ind. Pay taxes, not business

            Personal assets used to satisfy debt

                        Unlimited liability

            Business gone with owner’s death

            Hard to raise $$$

CORPORATION ($100 in Memphis)

            One of more shareholder

            Separate legal entity

            Limited liability

            Raise capital by selling stock

            Costs more

            Double taxation (ind. and bus.)

            More complicated to start

            Admin duties

LIMITED LIABILITY ($300 in Memphis)

            One/more members

            Separate legal entity

            Pass through entity

            Limited liability

            Sharing of profits

            Costs more to establish

            Admin duties

            Raise capital by selling Membership interests

Flea Market Reference

Aim for a more spacious area (let the people crowd)

Thumbs thumbs thumbs (and research)

Sketches