WIPO Patent Meeting May End Early With Little Harmonisation In Work Plan 25/06/2008 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 2 Comments By William New World Intellectual Property Organization members addressing international patent policy this week may end work early after an apparent agreement to recommend the continuation of the committee next year and a possible focus on some 20 issues. The members appear to be planning to recommend further research by WIPO for the next meeting […]
US Supreme Court Limits Patent Owners’ Control Over Downstream Use Of Their Inventions 25/06/2008 by William New, Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Steven Seidenberg for Intellectual Property Watch The United States has once again chipped away at patent rights. The country’s highest court recently handed down a ruling that makes it harder for patent owners to impose limits on downstream users of their inventions. The US Supreme Court’s decision in Quanta Computer Inc. v. LG Electronics Inc., however, fails to address a major issue facing patent owners and their legal counsel: Can patent owners use conditional sales or licensing agreements to impose restrictions on downstream users?
WIPO Patent Committee Names Chair, Begins Focus On Global Status Report 23/06/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Kaitlin Mara The World Intellectual Property Organization committee charged with discussing international patent law kicked off its first formal meeting in three years today with the election of a Chilean chair and the start of work on a WIPO secretariat report on the global patent system that could form the basis for future work. […]
Standing Committee On The Law Of Patents To Reconvene After Two Year Hiatus 19/06/2008 by Kaitlin Mara for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Kaitlin Mara The World Intellectual Property Organization committee charged with coordinating relationships between national patent regimes will meet next week for the first time since an informal session in April 2006. It is the first formal convening since June 2005. The bulk of the meeting will be spent discussing future work for the committee, […]
Attorneys: New USPTO Patent Appeals Rules Will Raise Costs, Accomplish Little 18/06/2008 by Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch New United States Patent and Trademark Office procedural rules governing ex parte appeals of rejected patent applications before the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences (BPAI) have met with resistance from some patent attorneys, who argue they are unfair, unnecessary and will hurt smaller and foreign patent applicants. The USPTO said it adopted the rules, effective 10 December 2008, to streamline the handling of a growing number of such appeals.
New Stirrings On EU Patent Front In The Name Of Small Business 13/06/2008 by David Cronin for Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By David Cronin for Intellectual Property Watch BRUSSELS – The ‘fragmented’ nature of Europe’s patent application system is harming small firms, a Brussels event has been told amid new efforts to harmonise it. Ever since the early 1970s, the European Community – now Union – has been discussing the possibility of introducing a single patent […]
Panelists: Balance Needed Between Antitrust Law, Patent Quality 11/06/2008 by Liza Porteus Viana, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment By Liza Porteus Viana for Intellectual Property Watch WASHINGTON, DC – A careful balance must be struck between ensuring the quality of the United States patent system – and the patents themselves – and antitrust law to ensure that new technologies and services can be brought to market, particularly in the pharmaceutical industry, experts said in Washington Monday. “Imbalance can result in less competition, less innovation,” Deborah Garza, deputy assistant attorney general for the Department of Justice’s antitrust division, said during a meeting of the Intellectual Property Owners Association.
USPTO Patent Reexamination Process Is Flawed, Think Tank Says 10/06/2008 by Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Dugie Standeford for Intellectual Property Watch A United States Patent and Trademark Office procedure for third-party patent challenges is in turmoil and needs rethinking, an investigation by an independent think tank has found. Though few in number so far, inter partes reexaminations are increasingly used in conjunction with, rather than as an intended replacement for, patent infringement litigation. On top of that, the USPTO is taking years to resolve the cases, leaving business plans in disarray. The USPTO said it is working to cut delays in the system.
La aprobación brasileña de la investigación sobre células madre embrionarias podría fomentar la protección por patente 09/06/2008 by Catherine Saez, Intellectual Property Watch Leave a Comment Por Claudia Jurberg para Intellectual Property Watch RÍO DE JANEIRO – Hace poco, el Tribunal Supremo de Brasil aprobó, por un margen estrecho de 6 a 5, la investigación sobre células madre embrionarias, luego de analizar el tema durante tres días. La votación del 29 de mayo se realizó luego de una prolongada lucha que […]
Brazil Approval Of Embryonic Stem Cell Research Could Boost Patenting 03/06/2008 by Claudia Jurberg for Intellectual Property Watch 1 Comment By Claudia Jurberg for Intellectual Property Watch RIO DE JANEIRO – After three days of consideration, the Brazilian Supreme Court last week approved by a narrow 6 to 5 margin research involving embryonic stem cells. The 29 May vote followed a protracted fight that consumed three years. The case arose after former Brazilian Attorney General […]