Every business has it’s own unique DNA which makes it special.  Intellectual Property protection provides the means by which you can convert your ideas into valuable property, fortifying your strategic vision and key assets like your brand equity.

Whether you are a blogger, engaged in ecommerce, publishing ebooks or  making money online through article writing,  affiliate or internet marketing,  you would be aware the internet has opened up a whole new world of opportunties and dangers.

The danger and opportunity largely derives from the fact that the regulations and the practical ability to enforce them has fallen behind the pace of technological development.  The result is a wild west like environment where online publishers largely act without any regard to the multiplicity of laws which technically govern their operations.

The response to spam, privacy law violations, security threats, cybercrime, and intellectual property violations involves an understanding not only of the laws of different jurisdictions, but also the technology and culture of the internet and it’s rapidly evolving nature.  It also involves some understanding of the various economic models being adopted to exploit the infrastructure of the internet.

Few traditional legal experts have the technical knowledge,  an understanding of the economic models used on the internet and it’s practical architecture.   Whilst there are IT experts possessing a very detailed understanding of programming and internet technologies, their understanding of the law is sometimes imperfect.

This website contains knowledge and information regarding some of the information necessary to survive in this maze of overlapping jurisdictions and mega-corporations such as Google and Ebay.  In the new digital economy there is a collision of law and terms of service and End User Licence Agreements and there are many outstanding issues which havn’t been entirely resolved.

There are also Treaties, Memorandums of Understandings and  inter-governmental bodies and organisations which have emerged in a panicked attempt to control this mass of threat and opportunity we know as the internet.

The main focus of this website is to provide insights in the areas of copyright law, trademark law and other intellectual property related issues, with a particularly focus on internet related issues.     The internet is a two edged sword, making intellectual property potentially many times more valuable, but also more vulnerable to being stolen on a massive scale.  There are a swarm of ways to protecting intellectual property,  technologically and legally.  It is important to understand their relative strengths and weaknesses,  including their associated costs and limitations to decide upon the best combination of measures to use for a particular strategy.

The ‘law of the internet’ or cyberlaw is still in it’s infancy as the various jurisdictions arrive at political and legal solutions to the liability of search engines, other online intermediaries and technologies to respond to ways of protecting their constituents.     Operating on the internet also involves an understanding of media and communications law and defamation law. This is of relevance to all online sellers, publishers, internet marketers, advertisers, content hosts and internet service providers.

Some jurisdictions  have developed cyberspecific legislation, but all  have to fit their laws together into a  structure that functions.  Legislation and important precedents in case law cannot be ignored,  in terms of their implications  in the international marketplace.

The Internet has revolutionised the way we  interact,  how we buy and sell,  distribute  and exchange  information and knowledge.  There  is no single law that we can turn to resolve internet related intellectual property and other online legal issues such as obscenity,  privacy, cybercrime and censorship.  There are many interests wanting to  censor the internet for various reasons, to protect reputations, moral standards, prevent crime and maintain political control.

The advent of the internet has given rise to  complex concepts and problems in the areas of advertising and marketing law, consumer protection law and online contracts.

Although this website’s primary focus is on Australian intellectual property law,  it is recognised that the technology is designed so that it is  indifferent to geographical boundaries,  and problems aren’t necessarily confined to discrete geographical locations.

* Disclaimer:  This site is intended to operate purely as an informational  resource, a general overview of intellectual property and other related legal issues arising online.   It isn’t a substitute for professional legal advice from a lawyer certified to provide legal advice in your jurisdiction.  Neither is it intended to create an attorney-client  relationship.   The law varies in each jurisdiction and we do not warrant the accuracy, completeness or usefulness of any material you read here.