Right to Perform Copyrighted Work

Under the Copyright Act, to perform a copyrighted work means "to recite, render, play, dance, or act it, either directly or by means of any device or process." "Performing" a motion picture or other audiovisual work means "to show its images in any sequence or to make the sounds accompanying it audible." The Copyright Act defines the term "publicly perform" to mean "to perform or display [a copyrighted work] at a place open to the public or at any place where a substantial number of persons outside of a normal circle of a family and its social acquaintances is gathered." "To perform or display" includes to broadcast to such place open to the public. Therefore, performances in concert halls, theaters, restaurants, bars, nightclubs, and other common public facilities are covered by the exclusive right of performance, whether the performance is live or broadcast to the public place, while the viewing of a movie in a private home is not a public performance and thus is not covered by the right of performance.

Actual and Intended Use of Trademarks

Trademark rights are gained by actual use of a mark rather than by registration. Generally the first party who uses a mark in commerce has the right to use the mark in that geographic area as well as in the natural zone of expansion for that geographic area. Any shipment of goods bearing the trademark across a state line in the normal course of business satisfies the "use in commerce" requirement. Token sales made solely to establish trademark use do not constitute legally sufficient "use."

Copyright Infringement and Plagiarism

A copyright holder has the exclusive rights to reproduce, display, transmit, perform, and modify a work as well as the right to publicly perform a sound recording by digital transmission. There are exemptions in the Copyright Act that provide for certain exceptions to those exclusive rights, many in favor of limited nonprofit educational purposes. If none of the exemptions apply, the proposed use of someone else's copyrighted work will probably be copyright infringement. If proper attribution is required and is missing, the proposed use will also be plagiarism. Copyright laws prohibit plagiarism.

Plant Variety Protection Act

United States patent law has provided patent protection for new varieties of asexually reproduced plants since the 1930s. Congress passed the Plant Variety Protection Act (PVPA) in 1970 to "encourage the development of novel varieties of sexually reproduced plants and to make them available to the public."

Patent Law

It has been held by the United States Supreme Court that laws of nature, natural phenomena, and abstract ideas may not be the subject of a patent. The reasoning behind this rule is that laws of nature and abstract ideas are not created; rather, they exist independent of any person and are merely described by the person that discovers them. Included in the types of abstract ideas for which patents may not be obtained are mathematical formulae and algorithms, which are sets of steps or procedures designed to solve a problem.