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ARTICLE · 08 OCTOBER 2021

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Where Data Meets IP

How do you balance sharing and protecting your business' data? Unlike tangible assets, which can be protected primarily through physical means

CanadaIntellectual Property

How do you balance sharing and protecting your business' data? Unlike tangible assets, which can be protected primarily through physical means, intangible assets such as data require additional considerations. One key strategy to protect your business' data is to characterize, and protect, that data as intellectual property.

Data as IP

Copyright

Original compilations of data are protected by copyright, but whether a compilation of data is "original" is a highly contextual and factual determination. For example, the Federal Court of Appeal recently stated that the well-known "Multiple Listing Service" (MLS) system used for collecting and distributing real estate information merely includes a specific compilation of data from real estate listings and thus amounts to a "mechanical exercise" which cannot be protected as a compilation under the Copyright Act.1 Original compilations are often those where some degree of skill and judgement is involved when compiling

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The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.

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