I have a longstanding interest in intellectual property. I am a named inventor on about 20 US patents in areas including cybersecurity, communications, and video processing. Over the course of my career, I have also very active in advising early-stage technology companies regarding IP strategy. In addition, I have given congressional testimony on IP at hearings convened by the Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Intellectual Property and the House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet.
I believe that, outside of law schools, many universities do not provide sufficient opportunities to students who have an interest in learning more about IP. To help address that gap, I created a course on “IP for Technology Entrepreneurs” listed jointly in both the Anderson School of Management and the Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science.
In addition, I developed an online tutorial on “Intellectual Property Essentials” that has been adopted by the University of California Office of the President and made available to all UC campuses.
Academic Publications
John Villasenor, “Ten Thousand AI Systems Typing on Keyboards: Generative AI in Patent Applications and Preemptive Prior Art,” Vanderbilt Journal of Entertainment and Technology Law (forthcoming 2024).
John Villasenor, “Artificial Intelligence, Trade Secrets, and the Challenge of Transparency,” North Carolina Journal of Law and Technology (forthcoming 2024).
John Villasenor, “Generative Artificial Intelligence and the Practice of Law: Impact, Opportunities, and Risks,” Minnesota Journal of Law, Science, and Technology (forthcoming 2024).
John Villasenor, “Reconceptualizing Conception: Making Room for Artificial Intelligence Inventions,” 39 Santa Clara High Technology Law Journal 197 (2023).
John Villasenor, “Corporate Cybersecurity Realism: Managing Trade Secrets in a World Where Breaches Occur,” American Intellectual Property Law Association Quarterly Journal, Volume 43, Numbers 2/3, pages 329-357, Spring/Summer 2015. Available through SSRN at https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2488756
John Villasenor, “Rethinking a Digital First Sale Doctrine in a Post-Kirtsaeng World: The Case for Caution” Competition Policy International Antitrust Chronicle, Vol. 2, May 2013
Congressional Testimony
John Villasenor, “Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property – Part I: Patents, Innovation, and Competition,” Testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Intellectual Property, June 7, 2023
John Villasenor, “First Sale Under Title 17,” Testimony before the House Committee on the Judiciary; Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet, June 2, 2014.
Broader Interest Articles and Commentary
John Villasenor, “How the White House’s AI Executive Order could increase U.S. cyber vulnerabilities,” The Brookings Institution, November 22, 2023
John Villasenor, “How AI will revolutionize the practice of law,” The Brookings Institution, March 20, 2023
John Villasenor, “AI Inventions: Policy Options and a Path Forward,” The Brookings Institution, March 6, 2023
John Villasenor, “Patents and AI inventions: Recent court rulings and broader policy questions,” The Brookings Institution, August 25, 2022
John Villasenor and Sam Albright, “NFTs and Birkin bags: A Hermès lawsuit tests the limits of trademark rights,” The Brookings Institution, April 21, 2022
Ally Boutelle and John Villasenor, “The European Copyright Directive: Potential impacts on free expression and privacy,” The Brookings Institution, February 2, 2021
David Michael, David J. Kappos and John Villasenor, “Developing Effective Intellectual Property Partnerships,” MIT Sloan Management Review, June 16, 2015
John Villasenor, “Intellectual Property: Valuable to Every Discipline,” The Chronicle of Higher Education, August 4, 2014
John Villasenor, “How Much Copyright Protection Should Source Code Get? A New Court Ruling Reshapes The Landscape,” Forbes, May 19, 2014
John Villasenor, “How the Bitcoin Protocol Could Help Improve Copyright,” Slate, February 17, 2014
John Villasenor, “Copyright Infringement And Photo Sharing: A New Lawsuit Tests The Limits Of Fair Use,” Forbes, June 22, 2013
John Villasenor, “The ‘First Sale Doctrine’ and Its Impact on the Music Biz,” Billboard, April 1, 2013
John Villasenor, “The Satellite Question: Why SiriusXM Should Pay Higher Performance Royalties to Artists,” Billboard, February 22, 2013
John Villasenor, “How Entrepreneurs Can Thrive Under the “First-Inventor-to-File” Patent System,” Forbes, December 7, 2012
John Villasenor, “Can a Company Trademark the Colors on its Web Site?,” Forbes, September 15, 2012
John Villasenor, “Why Artists Should Always Get Paid By Broadcasters Who Play Their Songs,” Forbes, July 2, 2012
John Villasenor, “The Strangely Tilted Playing Field of Music Copyright Royalties,” Forbes, May 22, 2012
John Villasenor, “Untangling The Real Meaning Of ‘First-To-File’ Patents,” Fast Company, March 6, 2012
Policy Publications through the Brookings Institution
John Villasenor, “Digital Music Broadcast Royalties: The Case for a Level Playing Field,” The Brookings Institution, August 2012
John Villasenor, “The Comprehensive Patent Reform of 2011: Navigating the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act,” The Brookings Institution, Policy Brief #184, September 2011