Field Fisher Waterhouse
Trademarks in Virtual Worlds
May 18, 2009
by David Krell
david@davidkrell.com
This morning, I attended my first session of INTA's 2009 Annual Meeting -- Trademarks in Virtual Worlds. The panel consisted of:
David Naylor - Field Fisher Waterhouse
Marty Roberts - Linden Lab (Second Life)
Sheldon Burshtein - Blake, Cassels & Graydon (Moderator)
And I asked the $64,000 question of the panel -- On a scale of one to ten, how are law firms generally doing in embracing virtual worlds and Second Life to promote their professional services.
David Naylor said, Few law firms have engaged in virtual worlds. He theorized that clients may trigger an increased presence of law firms in the virtualverse. Lawyers will need to understand the technology important to their clients. The adage remains -- Tell me and I'll forget. Show me and I'll remember. Involve me and I'll understand.
Sheldon Burshtein pointed out the resource-intensive demands of participating actively in virtual worlds.
Mr. Naylor backed up the point. You need to utilize resources in an effective way.
He gave three examples of how law firms are using or can use virtual worlds: education, recruiting, communication with offices/clients in other cities.
david@davidkrell.com
This morning, I attended my first session of INTA's 2009 Annual Meeting -- Trademarks in Virtual Worlds. The panel consisted of:
David Naylor - Field Fisher Waterhouse
Marty Roberts - Linden Lab (Second Life)
Sheldon Burshtein - Blake, Cassels & Graydon (Moderator)
And I asked the $64,000 question of the panel -- On a scale of one to ten, how are law firms generally doing in embracing virtual worlds and Second Life to promote their professional services.
David Naylor said, Few law firms have engaged in virtual worlds. He theorized that clients may trigger an increased presence of law firms in the virtualverse. Lawyers will need to understand the technology important to their clients. The adage remains -- Tell me and I'll forget. Show me and I'll remember. Involve me and I'll understand.
Sheldon Burshtein pointed out the resource-intensive demands of participating actively in virtual worlds.
Mr. Naylor backed up the point. You need to utilize resources in an effective way.
He gave three examples of how law firms are using or can use virtual worlds: education, recruiting, communication with offices/clients in other cities.