With the advent of every pioneering technology, intellectual property disputes inevitably follow. From the sewing machine in the 1850s to Alexander Graham Bell's telephone to the Wright brothers' flight-control system, developments driving great social change have often led to decades-long disputes over IP rights. The Internet of Things is no different.
The Internet of Things (IoT), sometimes known as the Intelligence of Things, is a network of interconnected physical objects, each embedded with sensors that collect and upload data to the Internet for analysis or control. Examples include IoT-enabled smart homes, smart-city traffic systems, and smart waste-management systems. According to some analysts, IoT will revolutionize the world economy and herald changes rivaling the industrial revolution. IoT-based agriculture will evaluate planting conditions, weather, crop status, and farm equipment in real time to optimize crop yields. IoT supply chains will automate shipping and delivery by precisely predicting the time of arrival for goods and track important details like temperature control, which affect the quality of products in transit. IoT medicine will continuously monitor patients at home and automatically treat them in case of emergency. All of these developments raise the question: how will IoT companies protect their technology? In this article, Finnegan attorney Kenie Ho discusses the importance of trade secrets as the Internet of Things (IoT) continues to revolutionize the way we live and work.
Originally published in Inside Counsel, October 6, 2016
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