Research
What I Need To Know
I need to know how the growing augmented and virtual reality market is impacting the legal questions that arrive with them. Knowing more about this topic will benefit me in my life today by exposing me to a new perspective that deals with the law. During my current job shadowing placement, I work with criminal and civil cases. By researching the topic of my choosing, I will be learning something in a different way than on a daily basis. Additionally, I personally feel like this is going to be important as intellectual property is the specific field of law that I want to have a career in in the near future.
What I Know
Right now, I know the basic principles of intellectual property law. The term relates to intangible property that can be protected under both state and federal laws. Some of the more common examples of intellectual property include copyrights, trademarks, and patents. I also know the basics of virtual reality (VR). It is simply defined as a computer simulation of a 3D image and can be interacted with in a physical way. Sometimes, this is done with electronic equipment, such as a VR headset. Other times, sensors are used to emulate a simulation.
The Search
Apart from my mentor, Mr. Hamilton, and the articles I am going to use for this capstone project, I think I will use some books from The Hamilton Law Firm’s library. Additionally, I may find some magazines to get some background info on the market of virtual reality and where it stands with technology today. I feel these sources will be helpful because they will help me find crucial details to portray my ideas.
While these sources may all provide info, I need to be careful of the presence of bias. For example, my mentor’s perspective on this topic may be much more different than the author of a book, especially since the two are in altering positions. If I do end up using sources such as these, I will be careful to not alter the info provided to me, but I will exclude things that seem "unfair".
What I Discovered
After doing some research, I have found out that the owner of a trademark can give permission to someone regarding the rights of the product. This can also apply to virtual reality. To "prevail on a claim of trademark infringement under federal law, a plaintiff must establish that the defendant used the same or a similar mark "in commerce" in connection with the sale or advertising of goods or services without the plaintiff's consent". This means that the user of a real trademark, specifically in VR, an attempt to escape liability under federal law by claiming that the "in commerce" clause infringement can not be fulfilled. Additionally, there are hundreds of possibilities with what VR can do to enhance existing forms of entertainment and social media. Due to the immersive experience offered, publishers of VR must consider the implications on both their IP rights and those rights of other companies as well. The laws governing this form of illustrious media are evolving as time progresses.