Intellectual Property
Intellectual property is a strategic component of a company’s value, identity and competitiveness. Trademarks, patents, designs, creative works, software, databases, digital content, know-how and trade secrets may represent an essential part of a company’s assets and require coordinated management, from the ideation stage through commercial exploitation and protection against unauthorized use.
Cugia Cuomo & Associati assists companies, professionals, public and private entities, and other business operators in protecting, managing and enhancing intellectual and industrial property rights in Italy and international markets. The Firm’s work is particularly focused on the technology, digital, creative, manufacturing, publishing, audiovisual and communications sectors.
Areas of practice
Cugia Cuomo & Associati assists companies, professionals, public and private entities, and other business operators in the following areas:
Trademarks, branding and distinctive signs
clearance searches, assessment of the availability and distinctive character of signs, definition of filing strategies and the territorial scope of protection, registration, management and monitoring of trademark portfolios, protection of trade names, and action against confusingly similar or imitative signs.
Patents, utility models, designs and models
protection and enhancement of technical innovations and the distinctive or ornamental features of products, including in relationships among companies, inventors, employees, collaborators and industrial partners.
Copyright and related rights
assistance in relation to literary, artistic, musical, audiovisual, photographic, publishing and advertising works, as well as creative and digital content, from determining ownership to managing rights of use, reproduction, adaptation, distribution and communication to the public.
Software, applications and IT solutions
analysis of ownership of rights in software and solutions developed internally or by third parties; assistance with design, development, licensing, assignment, distribution, maintenance, updates, outsourcing and the use of cloud services; and protection of source code, IT architectures, interfaces and technical documentation.
Open-source software, third-party components and technology services
assessment of the relationship between proprietary software, open-source components, third-party programs and cloud services, including review of the relevant terms of use and assistance in drafting and reviewing agreements with developers, technology providers, agencies, employees and collaborators.
Databases, data and digital content
analysis of ownership and of the conditions governing the use, access, reproduction, extraction, processing, indexing and distribution of databases, archives, images, texts and other content; assistance with scraping, data reuse, interoperability, access to and sharing of information in relationships between businesses and digital service providers.
Artificial intelligence and emerging technologies
assessment of the legal issues connected with the use of artificial intelligence systems to create, select, transform or distribute content; the use of works, data, images, texts, archives and databases to train or operate automated systems; ownership of and rights to use outputs generated or assisted by artificial intelligence; and the authenticity, provenance and traceability of digital content, including through marking technologies and distributed-ledger systems.
Know-how, trade secrets and confidential information
identification and protection of confidential assets, protection of know-how, and definition of contractual and organizational measures aimed at preserving their economic value, regulating access and preventing the disclosure or unauthorized use of information.
Research, innovation and technology transfer
assistance with research and development projects, industrial collaborations, co-production, co-branding, licensing and technology transfer, including issues concerning ownership and the allocation of rights to exploit the results.
Agreements, licensing and the exploitation of intangible assets
drafting, review and negotiation of assignments and licences concerning trademarks, patents, designs, works, software and databases; development, research, industrial collaboration, distribution, franchising, merchandising and product placement agreements; SaaS, cloud, outsourcing, maintenance and application support agreements; terms of use for platforms, websites, applications and digital services; confidentiality agreements and non-disclosure provisions.
Corporate transactions and intellectual property portfolios
assistance in investments, acquisitions, reorganizations and due diligence involving intellectual property portfolios, as well as in defining internal procedures for identifying assets, documenting ownership, regulating access and selecting the most appropriate methods of protection and exploitation.
Domain names, websites, platforms and marketplaces
protection of domain names and a company’s digital presence, management of online accounts and profiles, action against the registration or use of confusingly similar domain names, cybersquatting, impersonation and parasitic exploitation of another party’s reputation, including administrative and judicial domain-name dispute procedures.
Online brands, digital advertising and e-commerce
assistance with brand protection across digital channels, online advertising, keyword advertising, social media, marketplaces, user-uploaded content and relationships with platforms, online service providers, developers, creators, influencers, agencies and other participants in the digital ecosystem.
Online infringements and unlawful content
monitoring and analysis of infringements, collection of evidence, preparation of cease-and-desist letters, requests for the removal or disabling of content, management of infringement notices and notice-and-action procedures, and assistance in dealings with online service providers.
Litigation and ADR
management of disputes concerning counterfeiting, plagiarism, imitation, unfair competition, copyright infringement, misappropriation of know-how and unauthorized use of content or technology; assistance in negotiating settlement agreements, administrative oppositions and challenges, urgent and interim proceedings, and actions for declarations, injunctions and damages.