Another day, another kerfuffle in the world of non-fungible tokens (NFTs) — and this time, the fuss is all about cartoon monkeys.
The Bored Ape Yacht Club is an NFT project that has attracted a lot of interest from celebrities. It comprises a collection of 10,000 illustrations of apes, and digital ownership of these gives buyers bragging rights, the ability to monetise their ape avatars v
In September 2021, the Philippines’ House of Representatives passed a landmark bill known as the Philippine Creative Industries Development Act. It could soon become a law, and its goal is nothing less than to make the country Southeast Asia's top creative economy by 2030.
Already, the Philippines’ creative sector is full of potential. In 2014, with little government support, the creative econo
Countries around the world have levied heavy sanctions on Russia ever since it invaded Ukraine. Some multinational companies have also halted their operations in the country. In turn, Russia has retaliated with a series of bans and even changed its intellectual property laws.
Many movie studios in the West have refused to release new movies in Russia. Warner Bros had planned to release The Batm
In the music business, the ownership of intellectual property has often been a controversial subject, and that’s all because of the lopsided balance of control. In short, record companies tend to seize most of the control. But that might change, if start-ups pushing ownership models based on non-fungible tokens (NFTs) take off.
In the short amount of time that NFTs have become a trending topic
Should comedians get paid like musicians and receive royalties from platforms that profit from their material? That's certainly a payment model that one group is championing. According to the Wall Street Journal, a group of comedians, led by global rights administration company, Spoken Giants, wants to be paid royalties when their jokes are played on radio and streaming services such as Spotify an
Anita, a biopic about Hong Kong pop icon Anita Mui, drew critical praise and achieved commercial success when it was released last year. However, the movie has also sparked litigation from the late entertainer’s brother, who claims that the film’s production company has infringed on his rights over two registered trademarks.
According to the South China Morning Post, Peter Mui, Anita’s elder b
Social media is filled with photos and videos used by people who do not seek permission from the original creators. Most recently, for example, a Russian production house was pinpointed as having copied the original concept of a photographer without bothering to tweak the original concept even slightly.
In December 2015, photographer Stig Havard Dirdal was hired by the Norwegian camera store St
Celebrating the Lunar New Year in China is an old tradition, but in recent years, it has also become an occasion for using new technology, most notably through the gifting of digital hongbaos (the name for red paper packets containing money) using different e-wallet platforms.
This year, the enterprising fintech innovators of China have come up with yet another new way to mark the festive seas
Twenty years ago, American entrepreneur Sara Blakely launched a business selling shapewear that was more comfortable and more effective than anything else on the market at the time. She called the brand Spanx. And in 2021, she sold a majority share of this business to investment company Blackstone, bringing her net worth to over US$1 billion.
Blakely couldn’t have grown her business without tre
Wordle is the new sensation sweeping the Internet, and it all boils down to its resolutely simple rules. This word game is hosted on an ad-free website, you can only play it once a day, and the creator has no intention of making the game addictive or viral. There isn’t even an app version — at least not an official one.
Still, this game of guessing a different five-letter English word each day
Founded in 2008, Chinese fast-fashion online retailer Shein is known for its high frequency of refreshed inventory featuring the latest trends, and very low prices — so low, in fact, that it has been giving fast-fashion Forever 21 and H&M a real run for their money in recent years.
But Shein has also drawn attention for negative reasons, and alleged rampant plagiarism is one of them. Brand
Being named a UNESCO World Heritage Site can help to catalyse tourist interest, and thus generate value for a country’s economy. As these sites are regularly reviewed to assess whether their conservation status qualifies them for a continued place on this list, it also incentivises governments to prioritise the protection of their countries’ historical architecture and infrastructure. If one views
In a 2016 lawsuit, beauty company Avon admitted liability for infringing on Rea.deeming Beauty’s intellectual property rights. The object in question was a hot pink make-up sponge that Avon had named “Beauty Blender”. And as all make-up buffs know, the most famous Beautyblender (yes, that’s how it’s officially spelled) was invented by Rea Ann Silva, the founder of Rea.deeming Beauty.
Let’s sta
Much of the world may still know Jessica Simpson as a 1990s pop star turned reality show personality. But since 2005, she has also been a retail entrepreneur, and a very successful one at that, having steered the Jessica Simpson Collection with different business partners. And now, after years of problems with her most recent licensing partner, she has bought back full ownership of the label that
From pop culture IP news to outrage over recipe plagiarism, these were the stories our readers loved this year.
1. Creator of Netflix sensation Squid Game accused of plagiarism
Shortly after Squid Game became a global streaming blockbuster, the show's creator-director Hwang Dong-hyuk was accused of plagiarising As The Gods Will, a 2014 Japanese movie.
2. By creating her own IP, mod
Independent designers and brand owners are as susceptible to idea theft as ever, but increasingly, those affected have been eschewing troublesome legal processes for calling out the responsible parties on social media. PitchMark looks into the advantages and disadvantages of doing so, and if there are alternative solutions.