The textbook is comprehensive. It covers all of the key intellectual property areas including patent, copyright, trademark, and trade secret law. There is also a detailed table of contents, glossary of key terms, and end-of-chapter assessment. read more
Reviewed by Marcus Ellison, Adjunct Faculty, Trine University on 1/3/24
Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less
The textbook is comprehensive. It covers all of the key intellectual property areas including patent, copyright, trademark, and trade secret law. There is also a detailed table of contents, glossary of key terms, and end-of-chapter assessment questions with an answer key at the back of the book. All of this makes it easy to use this text in whole or in part in an intellectual property-focused course or as part of a broader course of legal topics that wants to touch on some aspects of intellectual property.
Content Accuracy rating: 5
The textbook appears accurate as of the time it was written and it does a good job of addressing the identified objectives listed at the top of each chapter. This can help determine whether or not to use this book. The content matches the objectives.
Relevance/Longevity rating: 5
The textbook primarily covers the discipline of intellectual property in a broad-based fashion. Much of what is covered involves analysis of broad-based legal principles and traditions that will endure over time. The nature of this law area is that it updates and changes every year, so some more current knowledge may be needed to supplement this text. However, this text for the most part will stay true and not become outdated very quickly.
Clarity rating: 5
This book should be easily readable and digestible for the typical undergraduate student. It would be at the level of a college student who wants to know more about this area of law than a law student looking to develop a high level of legal scholarship and understanding in this discipline. The text is plain-spoken about most legal topics and not full of jargon and overly technical terminology.
Consistency rating: 5
The book is consistent in how it lays things out and in style, tone, and demeanor. The content is primarily text-based but there are some charts and basic graphs that do provide some varied content to help break up the text pages. The book is consistent in terms of terminology and framework. Each chapter can be used and read as a stand-alone unit separate from the other chapters in the text. Each chapter is further broken down into digestible sections and chunks covering different areas of the topic.
Modularity rating: 5
Each book chapter covers a unique area that can be studied separately from the other chapters. Citations, references, and appropriate appendices are again broken up by each chapter. Most chapters highlight a unique area of the law and cover the basic principles and terminology related to that area. Most chapters’ content will not tie into or build upon things covered in previous or subsequent chapters.
Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 5
The book as a whole has a logical flow even though each chapter covers a unique area of law. The book covers patent and and trademark law in more detail than copyright law though those are often considered to be harder areas to understand. Copyright law in particular has undergone changes starting in 2024 with the number of high-profile items starting to lose copyright protection such as Disney’s Mickey Mouse so this area in particular will need to be updated or supplemented with other information for those seeking to use this textbook.
Interface rating: 5
The text overall was clear and easy to read. It is laid out well with an appropriate amount of white space. The tables, charts, and visual cues are appropriate to the subject material.
Grammatical Errors rating: 5
The text is free from grammatical and spelling errors.
Cultural Relevance rating: 4
The textbook is not insensitive or offensive in any way.
This is a good textbook for undergraduate students seeking a basic understanding of intellectual property law. For students that are in engineering or other technological programs this text likley has enough depth to teach them what they need to know in this area.
Reviewed by Andrea Bearman, Director of Instructional Design and Development/Instructor, Trine University on 3/13/23
The textbook covers many facets and ideas on copyright and patents, as well as a helpful index and glossary. Very well done on the coverage of content. read more
Reviewed by Andrea Bearman, Director of Instructional Design and Development/Instructor, Trine University on 3/13/23
Comprehensiveness rating: 5 see less
The textbook covers many facets and ideas on copyright and patents, as well as a helpful index and glossary. Very well done on the coverage of content.
Content Accuracy rating: 5
The content, to the best of my knowledge, is accurate, error free, and is as unbiased as possible.
Relevance/Longevity rating: 5
The content is up-to-date, as it was created very recently. The majority of the information will not change rapidly over time; trademark, patents, and copyright are constant concepts in the world, generally unchanging.
Clarity rating: 5
The text is written at a level most if not all people will be able to understand. The glossary and index are available to support those who need it as well.
Consistency rating: 5
The textbook framework is consistent and well-done. The chapters are broken into manageable parts and offer assessment questions throughout.
Modularity rating: 4
The chapters are well-crafted and have cognitive breaks with videos and images. It might be beneficial to consider making some of the images smaller as they can be quite large and overwhelming.
Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4
The textbook is organized well, thought it might be beneficial to equally represent copyright like the patent and trademark sections. Patent and trademark each have two chapters, while copyright is only one. As there is so much information about Creative Commons licensing and open sourced content, it seems like it could be it's own chapter rather than squeezed in with copyright.
Interface rating: 5
The text does not have any navigation problems, distortion of images, or other issues which might confuse the user.
Grammatical Errors rating: 5
The text contains no grammatical errors.
Cultural Relevance rating: 5
The topic is not culturally insensitive or offensive. The source material includes diverse perspectives.
Introduction to Intellectual Property provides a clear, effective introduction to patents, copyright, trademarks, and trade secrets. The text may be used by students and instructors in formal courses, as well as those applying intellectual property considerations to entrepreneurship, marketing, law, computer science, engineering, design, or other fields. The luminaries involved with this project represent the forefront of knowledge and experience, and the material offers considerable examples and scenarios, as well as exercises and references.
Introduction to Intellectual Property was originally developed by the Michelson 20MM Foundation, released under the title The Intangible Advantage.
David Kline was a Pulitzer-Prize-nominated journalist and author who covered some of the world’s most important stories over the last 30 years for the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Christian Science Monitor, Rolling Stone, the Atlantic, Harvard Business Review, CBS and NBC TV, and other national media. He was also a contributing writer for Wired magazine for many years. In more recent years, Kline wrote on a variety of business and technology topics, with a special focus on intellectual property issues. His bestselling book Rembrandts in the Attic from Harvard Business Press is considered the seminal work on patent strategy within corporate America, and it has helped to shape the direction of corporate and policy-maker thinking on patent issues. In 2016, Kline was named one of the “World’s Top 300 Intellectual Property Strategists” by Intellectual Asset Management magazine.
David Kappos is widely recognized as one of the world’s foremost leaders in the field of intellectual property, including intellectual property management and strategy, the development of global intellectual property norms, laws and practices as well as commercialization and enforcement of innovation based assets. From August 2009 to January 2013, Mr. Kappos served as Under Secretary of Commerce and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). In that role, he advised the President, Secretary of Commerce and the Administration on intellectual property policy matters. As Director of the USPTO, he led the Agency in dramatically reengineering its entire management and operational systems as well as its engagement with the global innovation community. He was instrumental in achieving the greatest legislative reform of the U.S. patent system in generations through passage and implementation of the Leahy Smith America Invents Act, signed into law by the President in September 2011.
