In this week's post, we see how Amazon raises privacy concerns again with its new Amazon Sidewalk.

Plus, recent opinion by Fifth Circuit provides clarification on likelihood of confusion analysis, a key analysis common to all trademark, service mark, and trade dress infringement claims.

The Amazon Sidewalk Promises Improved Network Connectivity As Privacy Experts Raise Red Flags

As digital assistants become ever more present in homes across the globe, Amazon’s newest innovation, the Amazon Sidewalk, is raising privacy concerns because of its ability to connect to other Wi-Fi networks and bridge multiple networks to ultimately create new webs of connectivity among both Sidewalk owners and non-Sidewalk owners. 

While the Amazon Sidewalk is currently being rolled out in the United States alone, privacy experts across the globe are already concerned about the device’s capabilities.  For most experts, the biggest concern about the Amazon Sidewalk is that it comes with a default setting that will allow it to connect to Wi-Fi systems without the express consent or acknowledgement of the owners of the Wi-Fi network owner, and in some cases, without the knowledge of the owner of the actual device. 

Read the full article here.

Likelihood of Confusion Analysis by Fifth Circuit Provides Clarification

A recent opinion issued by the Fifth Circuit on December 3, 2020, provides helpful clarification on the key analysis common to all trademark, service mark, and trade dress infringement claims. In affirming a district court ruling of no likelihood of confusion and, therefore, denial of a request for preliminary injunction, the Court offers a closer analysis of a number of the “digits of confusion” considered in any likelihood of confusion analysis.

Read the details here.

Click to read the previous Weekly IP Buzz on Thriving Attorney.

For more posts, see our Intellectual Property Law Blog.

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In addition to publishing Thriving Attorney, Darin M. Klemchuk is founder of Klemchuk LLP, a litigation, intellectual property, and transactional law firm located in Dallas, Texas. Click to read more about Darin Klemchuk's practice as an intellectual property lawyer as well as IP mediation services. For more on the latest developments in IP law, see Ideate blog and IP Questions Answered blog.