5 ms·
It's technically a type of intellectual property, like a patent. If no agreements are in place, it's still infringement.
by lmkg 9y ago
It's technically a type of intellectual property, like a patent. If no agreements are in place, it's still infringement.
- jackvalentine 9y agoIs that really true? Is there something I can read for a better understanding?
- Digory 9y agoThe feds adopted a Trade Secrets Act in 2016. [0] But many states have had versions of the Uniform Trade Secrets Act, starting in 1979.[1] [0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defend_Trade_Secrets_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defend_Trade_Secrets_Act [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Trade_Secrets_Act https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Trade_Secrets_Act
- humanrebar 9y ago""" ...a trade secret is information that: * Is not generally known to the public; * Confers some sort of economic benefit on its holder (where this benefit must derive specifically from its not being publicly known, not just from the value of the information itself); * Is the subject of reasonable efforts to maintain its secrecy. """ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_secret https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trade_secret None of those criteria requires a contract or even an explicit label, but some sort of agreement is certainly easier to defend in court, if the need arises. Likewise, trademarks don't technically need to be registered or even claimed, but they do need to be enforced. If you open source your trade secrets or let stores sell generic "Cheerios", then you have a weak claim if you ever need to bring someone to court. Gratuitous: I am not a lawyer, this is not legal advice, etc.
- jackvalentine 9y agoInteresting... superficially it looks like patent protection without having to disclose the patent and have it eventually expire. Is that an accurate statement?
- YawningAngel 9y agoYou can independently reinvent it, you just can't steal it.
- jackvalentine 9y agoWhat happens if for example, unsolicited someone from the competition tells me the secret?
- mc32 9y agoDoes that mean someone can't independently come up with the formula for Coke (Pepsi or any knock off) because it's their intellectual property? [Or KFC's 13 spices] Or is Pepsi (and other knock offs) sufficiently different? Or something else working here.
- newfoundglory 9y agoI'm pretty sure the fundamental difference between trade secrets and a patent is that if someone else comes up with it independently, or if you tell someone what it is, a patent protects you and a trade secret doesn't.
- mc32 9y agoOP [lmkg] says it would still be infringement, if there is no agreement [x-licensing]. Not sure if that is true or not though.
- newfoundglory 9y agoThey are probably assuming that you were given the information with the knowledge it was a trade secret even if you didn't sign anything specific about keeping it secret, not that you invented it separately.
- mc32 9y agoThat was the missing piece. Thanks.
- solomatov 9y agoIANAL, but for something to be a trade secret, it should be secret, economically useful and there should be some reasonable precautions preventing its disclosure.
- nabla9 9y agoNo. Inventing the same thing independently does not violate trade secret. Reverse engineering is lawful methods to discover trade secret. Industrial espionage is unlawful. Unlike registered intellectual property, trade secrets can be kept indefinitely.