Top 15 Blogs For An Intellectual Property (IP) Enthusiasts

From flying Kats to dogs with magnifying glasses, the IP geek in you is sure to be satisfied with the web blogs featured here.

We bring to you the top 15 blogs from which even the pickiest of IP connoisseurs can choose.

1.IPWatchdog

IPWatchdog was launched in the year 1999, and has since become one of the top IP blogs on the internet. Today, it is recognised as one of the leading sources providing to the minute news and information in the patent and innovation industries. Apart from that, the blog watches out for policy reforms and even provides counsel for inventors on the protection of their intellectual property. The blog even follows tech giants like Apple, Facebook, IBM, Sony and Microsoft among others to keep their readers updated with the latest developments on the business, substance, and law of patents, technology and innovation. The blog occasionally covers Copyrights and Trademarks as well. The blog is owned and maintained by Gene Quinn, a patent attorney, law professor, author and inventor.

The blog can be accessed at www.ipwatchdog.com.

2.IPKat

Founded in 2003, IPKat aims at providing information on the latest developments in copyright, patents, trademarks, information technology, privacy and confidentiality. This superhero is unmistakable; he is a cat by birth and an IP aficionado by choice. The blog is written from a European/ UK perspective. There are also guest posts from around the world. IPKat is also highly interactive, soliciting posts from its users. It is a tremendously popular IP blog, featuring a wide range of posts concerning IP in different parts of the world. However, while the quality of articles posted on the blog is commendable, it would certainly be nice to read a blog that is more visually appealing and offers a better reading experience.

You can check out the website at www.ipkat.com.

3.SpicyIP

This Indian blog was founded by Prof. Shamnad Basheer in 2005, and is run by analysts and fellows who are dedicated to providing incisive posts in the field of intellectual property rights, with the website being constantly updated with regular posts to reflect the ever-changing world of intellectual property rights

With a great user-interface, the blog is a pleasure to navigate, providing the latest news in the field of IPR in India and around the world, with in-depth analytical pieces as well. The blog also has interesting opinion pieces and posts by experts, breaking down complex concepts, issues and judgments pertaining to intellectual property rights. Further, the blog also contains a space dedicated to career opportunities in the field of IP as well as events such as conferences and workshops.. The blog covers a range of topics- from copyright and patents to trademarks.

You can access the blog at www.spicyip.com.

4.Patently-O

Patently-O is an American based web blog which primarily covers the developments in America with respect to Intellectual Property. One of the best blogs relating to Intellectual Property in the world, it was founded by Dennis Crouch and launched in January 2005, presenting an extensive empirical analysis of the US patenting system. It also provides patent prosecution tips for attorneys and inventors, statistics, and status updates of patent infringement cases. The layout of the website is crisp and neat, with the website containing information about jobs as well. It also contains a journal, with insightful academic articles. What is also interesting about the blog is that it contains a section on ‘ethics’ as well.

You can find the web blog at www.patentlyo.com.

5.Kluwer Copyright Blog

Kluwer Copyright Blog is a publication of Kluwer Law International which primarily provides information and news with respect to the European copyright law across various media platforms. The copyright blog publishes short columns on issues and events concerning European copyright law and occasionally US law where there is a cross border interest. The blog was founded in 2010 and caters to copyright law professionals in general and more particularly, copyright law professional operating in Europe. The managing editor of the blog is Dr. Lucie Guibault whose work focuses on copyright and neighbouring rights law, collective rights management, open access licensing, protection of computer programs and database right. The contributors include practising lawyers, IP professionals as well as academicians.

The blog can be accessed at www.kluwercopyrightblog.com.

6.Foss Patents

The FOSS Patents blog covers software patent news and issues pertaining to Free and Open Source Software (FOSS). Launched in April 2010 by Florian Mueller, an intellectual property activist with 25 years of software industry expertise who is often regarded as the world’s most-quoted expert on smartphone patents, the blog is frequently listed as one of the best blogs in the world to keep oneself updated on the Smartphone IP wars. Mr. Mueller authors all the posts on the blog himself, providing information on the latest patent litigations in this space along with relevant filings. The articles on the blog present an extensive analysis and commentary on the issues under consideration.

You can check out the blog at www.fosspatents.com.

7.Trademarkology

Trademarkology is an American blog which provides counsel primarily in matters related to trademarks, occasionally dealing with issues of copyrights and patents. It was started in 2013 by Stites & Harbison, PLLC, one of the top trademark firms in the United States. The blog aims to provide businesses with insight and guidance into strategically selecting a brand name and logo and protecting it with a federally registered trademark. Not only is this blog informative, but it is also full of witty quips. The delivery of the content and the presentation of the information on the blog is likely to keep an IP enthusiast captivated.

The blog can be accessed at www.trademarkologist.com.

8.Managing IP

Managing IP provides regular updates in the field of intellectual property rights. Further, what is interesting and commendable is that the website also contains a section on Women in IP Network, where the website invites women who are practitioners of IPR to be a part of a global network that regularly organizes conferences, seminars and other events that aim at fostering the growth of the number of women in the field of IP and which encourages them to contribute to the field. The website also contains a range of articles by experts from various countries such as India, China, Brazil, countries forming a part of the Asia-Pacific region, Americas and Europe, Mexico, Canada and Turkey. It also contains a special section on internet IP. The site is easy to use and navigate. The ‘magazine’ section of the blog contains cover stories that examine current issues, shorter features, regular surveys, accounts of recent events, as well as updates spanning a large number of countries.

You can find the blog at www.managingip.com.

9.IP News Center

IP News Center, powered by BananaIP Counsels (http://www.bananaip.com), was established in 2010 and is recognized as one of India’s leading IP news trackers. It is known for its well-written, succinct posts pertaining to the field of intellectual property rights, with regular updates from India and around the world. It was set up by Dr. Kalyan C. Kankanala, a leading authority in the field of IP in India who has authored several books on the subject. The user interface and easy navigability add to the visual appeal of the blog. The blog covers a wide range of topics from copyrights and trademarks to patents, with insightful pieces on current issues in the field. The blog also provides summaries of landmark cases, and covers the latest disputes and events pertaining to intellectual property rights.

The blog can be accessed at www.bananaip.com/ip-news-center.

10.Patentology

Patentology is an Australian blog, primarily covering IP news from within the island continent of Australia, and occasionally from other jurisdictions. All of the articles on the blog are authored by Dr. Mark Summerfield, a registered Australian Patent and Trade Marks Attorney. The blog primarily deals with patent law and practices in the fields of digital and computer systems, information and communications technologies, and computer software. The blog is easily navigable, and the crisp design adds to its appeal.

You can reach the blog at blog.patentology.com.au.

11.IP Finance

This weblog deals specifically with the merger of IP with money and looks at financial issues for intellectual property rights such as securitization and collateral, IP valuation for acquisition and balance sheet purposes, tax and R&D breaks, film and product finance, calculating quantum of damages among others. The blog was launched in January 2008. The content of the blog is not limited by geography or by type of IP right. The impetus for launching this blog, and the community that it supports, was the realization that the IP community is ill-equipped to respond to the concerns of the financial sector – and vice versa – when changes in banking and accounting practice are mooted. It is an excellent source for financial, valuation and business perspectives of IP.

The blog can be accessed at www.ip.finance.

12.World IP Review

World IP Review is a UK-based website that was launched in 2005, and has since become a trusted resource on intellectual property news and guidance. The website caters to businesses and legal practitioners active in intellectual property, as well as marketing and branding professionals who operate online. Not only does the website provide timely news and analysis on the most relevant and important issues in the arena of intellectual property, it also publishes analytical reports on pressing IP issues of various jurisdictions across the world, alongside the WIPR Annual and the World Intellectual Property Review Bi-Monthly.

The website can be reached at www.worldipreview.com.

13.Afro-IP

Afro-IP is an IP blog that covers the African intellectual property law, practices and policies. It provides the reader with news, information and comments on IP law and business deals pertaining to Africa.

Afro-IP was founded in late 2007, when leading patent attorney Darren Olivier realised that there was a paucity of reliable resources from which one could obtain news or any platform to which one could share information concerning IP developments in Africa. The Afro-IP team is largely Anglophone, but the blog also welcomes postings in other major African languages. The blog is free, regularly updated and increasingly accessible, having already established its following.

The blog can be reached at www.afro-ip.blogspot.com.

14.IP Tango

IP Tango, based in Latin America, was started by Jeremy Philips, the founder of popular blog IPKat (also mentioned in this post). The blog focuses on providing IP related news from around the world, particularly Latin America, with a few posts in Spanish. The pieces, crisp and well-written, cover a wide range of topics such as merging, unfair competition, trademarks, copyright infringement and compulsory licenses. The blog aims at disseminating reliable, entertaining information about the IP world. Hosted on blogspot, the user interface and aesthetics of the blog could use improvement.

The blog can be accessed at www.iptango.blogspot.in.

15.China IPR

Founded by Mark Allen Cohen in 2011, the blog aims at providing the latest intellectual property rights news from China, ranking ahead of its competitor IP Dragon. The layout of the website allows one to navigate the website year-wise, but does not allow for topic-wide navigability. The frequency with which posts are uploaded to the website is regular, with analytical pieces being published as well. It provides a bird’s eye view of the Chinese market; the blog is a must if one is interested in keeping abreast of the developments in the field of intellectual property rights, and provides regular updates about almost all aspects of intellectual property rights.

You can access the blog at www.chinaipr.com.