Santa Clara High Technology Law Journal Volume 20 | Issue 2 Article 10 January 2004 Protecting the Form but Not the Function: Is U.S. Law Ready for a New Model High Tech? Dana Beldiman Follow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.law.scu.edu/chtlj Part of the Law Commons Recommended Citation Dana Beldiman, Protecting the Form but Not the Function: Is U.S. Law Ready for a New Model High Tech?, 20 Santa Clara High Tech. L.J. 529 (2003). Available at: http://digitalcommons.law.scu.edu/chtlj/vol20/iss2/10 This Other is brought to you for free and open access by the Journals at Santa Clara Law Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Santa Clara High Technology Law Journal by an authorized administrator of Santa Clara Law Digital Commons. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. "Form andfunction should be one, joined in a spiritualunion" FrankLloyd Wright PROTECTING THE FORM BUT NOT THE FUNCTION: IS U.S. LAW READY FOR A NEW MODEL? Dana Beldiman Introduction As our society develops, it produces new and different kinds of intangible goods. However, many of the mechanisms available to protect such goods date back hundreds of years and are inadequate and in desperate need of an overhaul in order to adapt to the new realities of our world. Overly rapid doctrinal expansion can result in negative collateral effects, such as lack of precisely defined standards and blurring of boundaries between doctrines. Such side-effects risk disturbing the delicate balance between free competition and protection that underlies the structure of our intellectual property laws.