Assignment
Intellectual Property Infringement Damages
I. Patent Infringement -
Company A makes a variety of electronic products including LCD televisions. Company B, which does not compete with Company A, claims that its patented technology is being illegally used by Company A. The technology involves a feature which is not widely used or noticed by consumers.
(1) Explain the entire market value rule.
(2) Discuss whether the entire market value rule applies in this case.
II. Copyright Infringement -
A garage band claims that one of the twelve songs in a pop diva's latest platinum album was copied from a demo that the band had made two years ago.
You have been engaged by the band's counsel to assess damages and you have been asked to determine a reasonable royalty:
(1) What would you want to know that would assist you in determining damages? (What are some questions you would ask as a damages expert? Remember, you are not the lawyer so you are not trying to assess liability.)
(2) Using hypothetical answers to the questions you have under (1), answer the following questions:
- What would be the royalty base? (Should the royalty base be the revenues from the entire album or revenues from the song at-issue? If the royalty base is the revenues from just the song at-issue, should the royalty base be 1/12 of the revenues from the entire album or something different?)
- What are some factors that would affect the royalty rate?