Common Intellectual Property Infringement Examples

Why This Matters

Intellectual property infringement isn't just about "copying"—it's about understanding which type of IP right is being violated and why the law protects it in the first place. On your exam, you'll need to distinguish between copyright, trademark, patent, and trade secret violations, recognizing that each protects a different kind of creative or commercial value. The same unauthorized act might implicate multiple IP regimes, so knowing the boundaries between them is essential.

The key insight here is intent and harm. Some infringements deceive consumers, others undercut innovation incentives, and still others exploit someone's creative labor or personal identity. Don't just memorize that "piracy is bad"—understand which legal right each example violates and what harm the law is trying to prevent. That's what separates a passing answer from an excellent one.

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Copyright Violations: Protecting Creative Expression

Copyright protects original works of authorship fixed in a tangible medium—the law aims to incentivize creativity by giving authors exclusive rights to reproduce, distribute, and display their work. Infringement occurs when someone exercises these exclusive rights without authorization.

Unauthorized Reproduction or Distribution

• Copying or distributing copyrighted works without permission—this is the classic copyright violation, covering books, music, films, photographs, and software
• No intent requirement for civil liability—even accidental infringement can result in damages, though willful infringement increases penalties
• Statutory damages can reach $150,000$ per work for willful infringement, making this a high-stakes area of IP law

Software Piracy

• Unauthorized copying, distribution, or use of software programs—includes both individual downloads and businesses running unlicensed copies
• End User License Agreements (EULAs) define permitted uses; violating these terms can constitute infringement even if you "paid" for one copy
• Business Software Alliance actively pursues corporate piracy, with settlements often reaching millions of dollars

Illegal Streaming or Downloading

• Accessing copyrighted content through unauthorized channels—streaming sites, torrent networks, and file-sharing platforms all implicate copyright
• Both uploaders and downloaders face liability—though enforcement typically targets distributors and platform operators
• Criminal penalties now apply to large-scale streaming operations under the Protecting Lawful Streaming Act

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Trademark Violations: Preventing Consumer Confusion

Trademark law protects brand identifiers—words, logos, slogans, and even sounds or colors that distinguish one company's goods from another's. The core concern is consumer confusion: would a reasonable buyer mistake the infringing product for the genuine article?

Using Confusingly Similar Marks

• Likelihood of confusion is the legal standard—courts examine similarity of marks, relatedness of goods, and sophistication of buyers
• Doesn't require identical copying—a mark that sounds similar (phonetic equivalence) or looks similar (visual similarity) can still infringe
• Dilution claims protect famous marks even without confusion, preventing "blurring" of distinctive brand identity

Counterfeit Goods Production and Distribution

• Creating fake products that imitate genuine branded items—this is trademark infringement plus fraud, often carrying criminal penalties
• Harms both consumers and legitimate businesses—buyers may receive inferior products while brand owners lose sales and reputation
• Customs enforcement allows seizure of counterfeit goods at borders; the Lanham Act provides civil remedies including treble damages

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Patent Violations: Protecting Innovation

Patent law grants inventors a limited monopoly—typically 20 years—to exclude others from making, using, selling, or importing their invention. The tradeoff is public disclosure: society gets the knowledge, and the inventor gets temporary exclusivity.

Making, Using, or Selling Patented Inventions

• Strict liability offense—independent invention is no defense; if your product falls within the patent claims, you infringe
• Three types of infringement: direct (you make/use/sell), induced (you encourage others to infringe), and contributory (you supply components for infringement)
• Remedies include injunctions and damages—courts may award lost profits or a reasonable royalty, plus enhanced damages for willful infringement

Reverse Engineering of Patented Products

• Analyzing a product to understand its design—legal for learning purposes, but creating a competing product may cross into infringement
• Design-around efforts are encouraged by patent law; the question is whether your alternative truly avoids the patent claims
• Doctrine of equivalents can capture products that don't literally infringe but perform substantially the same function in substantially the same way

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Trade Secret Violations: Protecting Confidential Business Information

Trade secret law protects valuable business information that derives its value from being secret. Unlike patents, trade secrets have no registration requirement and can last indefinitely—but only as long as the owner takes reasonable steps to maintain secrecy.

Trade Secret Misappropriation

• Unauthorized acquisition, disclosure, or use of confidential information—covers formulas, customer lists, manufacturing processes, and business strategies
• Two paths to liability: improper means (theft, bribery, breach of duty) or breach of a confidentiality obligation
• Defend Trade Secrets Act (DTSA) provides federal civil remedies, including ex parte seizure orders in extraordinary cases

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Publicity and Attribution Violations: Protecting Identity and Credit

These violations don't fit neatly into the "big four" IP categories but appear frequently on exams. Right of publicity protects individuals from commercial exploitation of their identity, while plagiarism violates attribution norms (and sometimes copyright law).

Unauthorized Use of Celebrity Likeness or Name

• Commercial exploitation without consent—using someone's image, name, or persona to sell products or services
• Right of publicity is primarily a state law doctrine; some states extend it beyond death (postmortem rights)
• First Amendment tensions arise when the use is transformative or newsworthy rather than purely commercial

Plagiarism in Academic or Professional Settings

• Presenting others' work as your own without attribution—an ethical violation that may or may not constitute legal infringement
• Not always copyright infringement—copying public domain works or uncopyrightable ideas can still be plagiarism
• Professional consequences include academic expulsion, loss of credentials, and reputational damage even when no lawsuit follows

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Quick Reference Table

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Self-Check Questions

1. Which two infringement types both involve digital content but implicate different exclusive rights under copyright law? Explain what distinguishes streaming from downloading in terms of the rights violated.

2. A company discovers a competitor is selling a product with a similar-sounding name. What legal standard will the court apply, and what factors matter most?

3. Compare and contrast patent infringement and trade secret misappropriation. If you invented a new manufacturing process, what are the advantages and disadvantages of each protection strategy?

4. Why might the same unauthorized use of a celebrity's image violate both trademark law and right of publicity? Under what circumstances would only one apply?

5. An exam FRQ describes someone who reverse-engineered a competitor's product and created a similar version. What questions would you need answered to determine whether patent infringement, trade secret misappropriation, both, or neither occurred?