Fiction,Faction and Intelligence

There is a demonstrable overlap between authentic intelligence operations and the way they have been portrayed in works of fiction, which is not entirely surprising considering the number of distinguished, and some lesser-known, novelists who have worked for MI5 and the Secret Intelligence Service over the years. Setting aside for a moment the work of Compton Mackenzie, Graham Greene, John le Carré and Somerset Maugham, arguably SIS's most renowned authors, what about Kenneth Benton, David Footman and Jack Cordeaux? The writing culture was especially prevalent in the Security Service, where the legendary case officer Jack Bingham, for whom David Cornwall once worked, raised no objection to the employment of authors. His colleague Max Knight wrote some terrible thrillers, and his assistant, William Younger, chose the interesting pen-name William Mole. Bingham's wife Madeleine and daughter Charlotte, who also worked for MI5, wrote many books, and they were not alone. Curiously, however, it is Ian Fleming who has attracted the greatest attention for his great invention, 007. Yet there remains some doubt about whether Bond may not have been inspired by his former tutor in pre-war Kitzbuhel, Phyllis Bottome, whose 1946 novel The Lifeline introduced a suave, German-speaking, Swiss-educated, mountaineering, British agent a full five years before the publication of Casino Royale. A coincidence? Maybe, but the paths taken by these two authors criss-cross on many occasions.     

Post-termination use of licensed intellectual property by licensees

Legal and practical context: The ongoing dispute between Nokia and Qualcomm exemplifies thecomplex issues that arise when the licensor–licensee relationshipbreaks down. It illustrates that any means by which a licenseecan secure rights to use licensed IP after termination of alicence agreement can be of great commercial importance, notto mention significant economic value. If a licensee can continueto use licensed IP notwithstanding that its agreement has beenterminated, a licensor's ability to control and derive maximumeconomic benefit from its IP may be fundamentally compromised. Key points: The means available to licensees to secure such rights varydepending on the kind of IP right licensed, but there are severalcommon themes, which draw on a diverse range of legal rulesand concepts, including specific IP concepts and laws (includingthe rules relating to assignment and licensing, the exhaustionof rights, revocation and invalidation, and defences to infringementclaims), contract law and competition law. This article discussespractical implications to be considered when drafting IP licenceagreements. Conclusions: From a licensee's perspective, the termination of its licenceagreement is not necessarily the end of the road. Licenseesshould be aware of these post-termination rights when expectingto face difficult renegotiations with a licensor. From bothparties' perspectives, but particularly that of licensor, thisarticle should demonstrate the importance of drafting to avoidany uncertainty that may arise on the termination of a licenceagreement.