Intellectual property rights and possible infringements are a major concern in many areas of the Internet today. eBay is by no means an exception. eBay has set forth a clear and straightforward policy on the rules it follows with regard to the protection of Intellectual Property Rights and its commitment to protecting the rights that belong to third parties. The introduction of this eBay policy clearly states that infringement is the unauthorized use of other people's intellectual property ? like copyrighted material and trademarks.
Rules that affect what a seller is allowed to sell on eBay include the restriction or prohibition of certain items simply because they have the potential to infringe on the intellectual property rights of others. These restricted items include: replicas, counterfeit items, and unauthorized copies; Celebrity material including faces, names and signatures, and autographs.
Media restrictions include movie prints in both 35mm and 70 mm formats, bootleg recordings of music, movies, videos, etc., recordable media, promotional copies, and digitally delivered goods.
Software restrictions include academic software, beta Software, and OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) software. Applications that have not been opened and are still in the original box are permitted to be sold.
It is recommended that when an eBay seller is selling media on eBay, such as DVD's, CD's, etc., that it is noticeably notated in the description of the auction that the item is ?new in box? or ?unopened?. If a used DVD, VHS tape, cassette or CD is being sold sellers should notate that the item is used and is the original.
There are even restrictions against certain types of equipment that might support unauthorized copies like mod chips, game enhancers, boot disks, and hardware or software that could allow members to duplicate copy-protected material.
When a seller lists an item, the seller is not allowed to encourage or enable others to infringe copyrights, trademarks or other rights. Members cannot improperly use eBay's name, logo or linking to the eBay web site, nor can a member include authenticity disclaimers or deny responsibility for the items offered in their listings.
Using another member's item description or picture without their permission is prohibited and falls under the rules set out in eBay's Item Description and Picture Theft Policy.
eBay has even gone so far that they created a program they call their VeRO program. VeRO stands for Verified Rights Owner. Per eBay, ?any person or company who holds intellectual property rights (such as a copyright, trademark or patent) which may be infringed upon by eBay postings or items listed on eBay is encouraged to become a VeRO Program member. Program members presently include hundreds of individuals, local law enforcement, and intellectual property owners from a wide array of industries?. The basic purpose of the VeRO program is to allow intellectual property owners to easily report listings that infringe their rights. eBay feels that it is in their best interest to ensure that infringing items are removed from the site, as they tend to erode good buyer and good seller trust. A tutorial on eBay's intellectual property policies can be found at http://pages.ebay.in/help/tutorial/verotutorial/intro.html.
Nowadays many people have their wealth in both tangible and intangible assets. These intangible assets are also known as intellectual property. It includes patents, copyrights, trademarks and even trade secrets. Many a times the value people are in possession of thus is much higher than the physical assets.
The commercialization and widespread use of the Internet provides everyone the chance to create intellectual property. This is no longer restricted to the large Multi National Corporations or the affluent few. Everyone has the right and the capability to develop such property with the help of copyrights, trademarks or inventions that can be patented. Although the intellectual property grows as a wealth-creating tool, it is added to your estate taxes. You will also be faced with the task of determining the value of this property so that it can be added to your estate to calculate the taxes.
A person's intellectual property, especially copyrights, make a lot of difference while estimating the estate taxes. It is necessary to know the value of all the assets including the intellectual property to be able to find out the value of the estate. When calculating the value of the gross estate, it will also include retirement accounts, joint property etc. As of now, the maximum limit up to which the estate tax is exempt is $2 million. In 2009, this limit is said to be increased to a sum of $3.5 million.
The valuation of the intellectual property is based on the fair market value of the property on the day of the person's death. Different intellectual properties like copyrights, patents etc use different methods to decide the market value of the property. On the basis of these findings, the value of the intellectual property is added to the gross estate. The valuation analysis is subjective and so the ideal method to choose is the one that will give you the lowest value. Although this may not be the best method when valuation is done for other purposes, but it is highly recommended when the main objective is to calculate your tax liability.
Many a times the value of the intellectual property will be higher than the value of the liquid cash or assets that are available in hand. This means that you will not have sufficient cash to pay the taxes. If and when you are in such a situation, then you will be required to sell some part of your estate to meet the expenses. You also have the alternative to utilize the tax payment deferment that the Internal Revenue Code(IRS) allows the taxpayers. Code 6161 of the IRS allows a deferment of estate taxes for up to ten years as long as a reasonable cause is provided by you.
One of the causes that the IRS considers reasonable is proof showing that the taxes cannot be paid due to the illiquid intellectual assets that encompass your estate. You are given time to consider the other options available to you to make the payments and ensure that you do not take some hasty decision like selling property. Nevertheless, you will be entitled to pay interest on the differed payment.
Both Bruce Moilan & Kris Koonar are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Bruce Moilan has sinced written about articles on various topics from Marketing, How to Sell on Ebay and How to Sell on Ebay. Increase your credibility...and your bottom line! Sellsi helps build trust in online auctions. By representing only the best eBay sellers, Sellsi has created a network of the most reputable merchants on the web. The Sellsi Seal instills confidence and add. Bruce Moilan's top article generates over 9900 views. to your Favourites.
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