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These excerpts taken from the GOOG 10-K filed Feb 13, 2009. Intellectual Property We rely on a combination of patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret laws in the U.S. and other jurisdictions as well as confidentiality procedures and contractual provisions to protect our proprietary technology and our brand. We also enter into confidentiality and invention assignment agreements with our employees and consultants and confidentiality agreements with other third parties, and we rigorously control access to proprietary technology. Google, YouTube, DoubleClick, DART, AdSense, AdWords, Gmail, I’m Feeling Lucky, PageRank, Blogger, orkut, Picasa, SketchUp and Postini are registered trademarks in the U.S. Our unregistered trademarks include, Blog*Spot, Jaiku, Android, Open Handset Alliance, OpenSocial, Panoramio, and Knol.
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Table of ContentsThe first version of the PageRank technology was created while Larry and Sergey attended Stanford University, which owns a patent to PageRank. The PageRank patent expires in 2017. We hold a perpetual license to this patent. In October 2003, we extended our exclusivity period to this patent through 2011, at which point our license will become non-exclusive. Circumstances outside our control could pose a threat to our intellectual property rights. For example, effective intellectual property protection may not be available in every country in which our products and services are distributed. Also, the efforts we have taken to protect our proprietary rights may not be sufficient or effective. Any significant impairment of our intellectual property rights could harm our business or our ability to compete. Also, protecting our intellectual property rights is costly and time consuming. Any increase in the unauthorized use of our intellectual property could make it more expensive to do business and harm our operating results. Companies in the internet, technology and media industries own large numbers of patents, copyrights and trademarks and frequently enter into litigation based on allegations of infringement or other violations of intellectual property rights. As we face increasing competition, the possibility of intellectual property claims against us grows. Our technologies may not be able to withstand any third-party claims or rights against their use. Intellectual Property We rely on a combination of registered trademarks in the U.S. Our unregistered trademarks include, Blog*Spot, Jaiku, Android, Open Handset Alliance, OpenSocial, Panoramio, and Knol.
14 Table of ContentsThe first version of the PageRank technology was created while Larry and Sergey attended Stanford Circumstances outside our control could pose a threat to our intellectual property rights. For example, effective Companies in the internet, technology and media industries own large Government Regulation We are subject to a number of foreign and domestic laws and regulations that affect companies conducting business on the internet. In In the U.S., laws relating to the liability of providers has provisions that limit, but do not necessarily eliminate, our liability for listing, linking or hosting third-party content that includes materials that infringe copyrights. The Child Online Protection Act and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act restrict the distribution of materials considered harmful to children and impose additional restrictions on the ability of online services to collect information from children under 13. In the area of data protection, many states have passed laws requiring notification to users when there is a security breach for personal data, such as California’s Information Practices Act. The costs of compliance with these laws may increase in the future as a result of changes in interpretation. Furthermore, any failure on our part to comply with these laws may subject us to significant liabilities. Similarly, the
practices concerning the use and disclosure of user data. Any failure by us to comply with
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In addition, because our services are accessible worldwide, certain foreign jurisdictions have claimed and others may claim that we are These excerpts taken from the GOOG 10-K filed Feb 15, 2008. Intellectual Property We rely on a combination of patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret laws in the U.S. and other jurisdictions as well as confidentiality procedures and contractual provisions to protect our proprietary technology and our brand. We also enter into confidentiality and invention assignment agreements with our employees and consultants and confidentiality agreements with other third parties, and we rigorously control access to proprietary technology. Google, AdSense, AdWords, Gmail, I’m Feeling Lucky, PageRank, Blogger, orkut, Picasa and Keyhole are registered trademarks in the U.S. Our unregistered trademarks include, Blog*Spot, Writely and YouTube. The first version of the PageRank technology was created while Larry and Sergey attended Stanford University, which owns a patent to PageRank. The PageRank patent expires in 2017. We hold a perpetual license to this patent. In October 2003, we extended our exclusivity period to this patent through 2011, at which point our license will become non-exclusive. Circumstances outside our control could pose a threat to our intellectual property rights. For example, effective intellectual property protection may not be available in every country in which our products and services are distributed. Also, the efforts we have taken to protect our proprietary rights may not be sufficient or effective. Any significant impairment of our intellectual property rights could harm our business or our ability to compete. Also, protecting our intellectual property rights is costly and time consuming. Any increase in the unauthorized use of our intellectual property could make it more expensive to do business and harm our operating results. Companies in the internet, technology and media industries own large numbers of patents, copyrights and trademarks and frequently enter into litigation based on allegations of infringement or other violations of intellectual property rights. As we face increasing competition, the possibility of intellectual property claims against us grows. Our technologies may not be able to withstand any third-party claims or rights against their use. Intellectual Property SIZE="2">We rely on a combination of patent, trademark, copyright and trade secret laws in the U.S. and other jurisdictions as well as confidentiality procedures and contractual provisions to protect our proprietary technology and our brand. We also unregistered trademarks include, Blog*Spot, Writely and YouTube. The first version of the PageRank technology was created while Larry and Circumstances outside our control could pose a threat to our intellectual property rights. For Companies in the internet, technology and media SIZE="2">Government Regulation We are subject to a number of foreign and domestic laws and regulations that affect companies
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In the U.S., laws relating to the liability has provisions that limit, but do not necessarily eliminate, our liability for listing, linking or hosting third-party content that includes materials that infringe copyrights. The Child Online Protection Act and the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act restrict the distribution of materials considered harmful to children and impose additional restrictions on the ability of online services to collect information from children under 13. In the area of data protection, many states have passed laws requiring notification to users when there is a security breach for personal data, such as California’s Information Practices Act. The costs of compliance with these laws may increase in the future as a result of changes in interpretation. Furthermore, any failure on our part to comply with these laws may subject us to significant liabilities. Similarly, the
practices concerning the use and disclosure of user data. Any failure by us to comply with our posted privacy policies or privacy-related laws and regulations could result in proceedings against us by governmental authorities or others, which could potentially harm our business. In addition, the interpretation of data protection laws, and their application to the internet, in Europe and other foreign jurisdictions is unclear and in a state of flux. There is a risk that these laws may be interpreted and applied in conflicting ways from country to country and in a manner that is not consistent with our current data protection practices. Complying with these varying international requirements could cause us to incur additional costs and change our business practices. Further, any failure by us to protect our users’ privacy and data could result in a loss of user confidence in our services and ultimately in a loss of users, which could adversely affect our business. In addition, because our services are accessible worldwide, certain foreign jurisdictions have claimed and others may claim that we are | EXCERPTS ON THIS PAGE:
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