Information Filled Under 'The Business of IP' Category
Kappos to Propose "Three-Track" Patent Examination Process Thursday, June 3rd, 2010
From the Wall Street Journal: U.S. Patent and Trademark Office chief David Kappos is proposing a new three-track system for patent applications that would allow applicants to pay an undisclosed amount on top of the standard $1,090 filing fee to jump to the front of the line for expedited reviews
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Kappos to Propose "Three-Track" Patent Examination Process
WIPO Gold – yesterday, WIPO launched “WIPO Gold”, a free, on-line global IP reference resource that provides simplified access to a broad collection of searchable IP data and tools relating to, for example, technology, brands, designs, statistics, WIPO standards, IP classification systems and IP laws and treaties. WIPO’s “Patentscope” search service provides free-of-charge, high-quality searches of data relating to over 1.7 million international patent applications filed under the PCT, and patent data collections of a growing number of countries
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Wednesday Shorts: New Tools and References
There are less then three weeks to go until theIP Business Congress 2010 gets underway in Munich. We have now confirmed the full programme for the event, which runs from 20th to 22nd June, and filled up the speaking faculty with just over 70 IP thought-leaders.
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BLOG: IP Business Congress fast approaching as delegate places get scarce
The recent High Court decision in E&J Gallo Winery v Lion Nathan Australia Pty Limited has come as a relief to many international trademark owners who may have been questioning whether the use of their trademarks in Australia would be sufficient to overcome a potential non-use action. The High Court upheld an appeal by E&J Gallo against the removal of its mark from the Trademarks Register for non-use.
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REPORT: Out of the lion’s den – High Court clarifies trademark use
The true value of a patent is an elusive concept which is tricky to pin down. While hard data can assist in a valuation, it is more difficult to predict the influence that more intangible elements will have on market price.
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ARTICLE: Value and market price of patents: let’s be realistic
A “trade secret” is defined as any production method, sales system or other useful technical or operational information related to a business activity that is not known to the public and that has been kept in confidence (Section 2(6) of the Unfair Competition Prevention Act).
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ARTICLE: Trade secrets in Japan
Although less well known and certainly less well used by foreign companies, the Chinese utility model patent system offers a potentially useful and strategically valuable route for protection of inventions, writes Bob Stembridge, the manager of customer relations at the IP Solutions business of Thomson Reuters.
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ARTICLE: Chinese utility models – a lesser-known IP strategy
In Germany, “trade secrets” comprise a broad variety of information, including technical know-how, commercial data and other business information. Examples of information that can constitute a trade secret include lists of addresses, documents of commercial offers, composition of materials, sources of supply, computer programs and their source code, information about production processes, lists of customers or suppliers, market research data, price calculations and drawings.
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ARTICLE: Trade secrets in Germany
On 18th May the European Court of Justice held a hearing on whether a European patent court proposal, put forward as part of the efforts to establish a single EU patent system, are consistent with the EU Treaty. Member states of the EU submitted a request for an opinion from the court in July 2009
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BLOG: ECJ hearing exposes EU divisions over unitary patent system for Europe
In 1997 Cyprus entered the European Patent Organisation and became a member of the Patent Cooperation Treaty. Therefore, the most effective way for a European patent holder to enforce its rights in Cyprus is to file a court application for a freezing order until its case is heard by the courts.
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REPORT: The Cypriot patent system: Q&A
As India continues to present itself as an attractive destination for investment, an increasing number of both Indian and international companies are seeking to assert their trademark rights by obtaining “.in” country-code top-level domains as part of their Indian operations.
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REPORT: Securing domain name protection in India
The UK’s experiment with having a designated intellectual property minister in the government has come to an end. Following the formation of the Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition after the country’s recent general election, the post of Minister for Higher Education and Intellectual Property – held by David Lammy MP in the previous Labour administration – has been dropped.
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BLOG: New UK government downgrades IP
Yesterday I reported on a blog posting from the well-known European anti-software patent campaigner Florian Mueller about a recent decision of the German Supreme Court which he said would open to the door to many more software patent grants (and litigation) in Germany. At the end of the piece I stated that if I were involved in the software industry I would be looking to get some clarificaiton on developments from a German patent attorney.
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BLOG: German Supreme Court software patent decision "not a landmark ruling", says expert
Back in March I wrote about the publication of a report that revealed just how important Intellectual Ventures had been to the Ocean Tomo IP auctions that took place between 2006 and 2009. Well, the lead author on that report – Tom Ewing of Avancept – has penned an article for the next issue of IAM (due out on 1st June) that looks at who was doing all the buying at those auctions, as well as some of the reasons for them doing so. It is very good stuff and will be fascinating reading for IAM subscribers.
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BLOG: The buyers at the Ocean Tomo auctions revealed
Regulation 33/2010 has come into force, providing implementing regulations for opposition proceedings as set forth in the Code of Industrial Property. However, in practice, the procedure cannot yet be used and is unlikely to be available during 2010 for a variety of reasons.
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REPORT: Italian opposition proceedings: from utopia to reality
Now that the experts have had time to digest the implications of yesterday’s decision of the EPO’s Enlarged Board of Appeal on the patentability of computer programs, I have started to get some detailed opinions on its implications. So here are a few
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BLOG: Reactions to the EPO computer program patent decision roll in
I have just received this press release from the EPO on the long-awaited Enlarged Board of Appeal review of how the EPO deals with the patentability of computer programs: Enlarged Board of Appeal confirms EPO approach to computer programs Today the Enlarged Board of Appeal of the EPO handed down its opinion on referral G 3/08, taking the opportunity to set out and confirm the approach of the EPO regarding the patentability of computer programs under the European Patent Convention (EPC). The opinion relates to four questions referred to the Enlarged Board in October 2008 by the President of the EPO…
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BLOG: EPO Enlarged Board of Appeal issues key decision on patentability of computer programs
The Hong Kong Court of Appeal has upheld the registrar of trademarks’ 2008 refusal to register the trademark NAKED for condoms. In the latest instalment of this long-running case, the appeal court found that the registrar had applied all the correct tests and that the High Court judge had interfered with the registrar’s discretion without grounds.
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REPORT: Court of Appeal strips High Court NAKED decision
The Supreme Court has upheld an actress’s right to control the broadcasting of her frontal nudity scene from the film Burnt by Frost. The court found that state broadcaster NRK had taken an excerpt from the original film beyond what was required for the purpose, and that the broadcasting of the nude scene was therefore illegal.
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REPORT: Supreme Court finds something fishy in nudity scene broadcast
Two cases pending before the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit deal with the questions of which rule applies when someone buys a copyrighted article outside the United States and then imports it, and whether such importation is an act of infringement under Section 602 of the Copyright Act or a permitted activity under the first sale doctrine.
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REPORT: Does first sale doctrine allow infringement claims for imported genuine goods?
Paul Michel, the chief judge of the Court of Appeal for the Federal Circuit in Washington DC, is due to retire at the end of May. In an exclusive interview that will run in the next issue of IAM Michel details what he plans to do next: The code of conduct that binds federal judges is quite strict in precluding us from speaking out on public, political or controversial issues even if they’re in the field of law. We are more or less restricted to only talking about the impact a change in law would have on the courts.
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BLOG: Michel to campaign for a strengthened US patent system when he leaves the CAFC
06-Apr-10 The world’s leading life science patent litigation law firms revealed 23-Apr-10 Get ready for the International Intellectual Property Strategists Association 20-Apr-10 New study shows US small caps reaping IP dividends 19-Apr-10 Questions emerge over undisclosed terms of new EPO president’s contract 13-Apr-10 Is it time to get realistic about the EU patent and move on to other things?
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BLOG: The top IAM blog stories in April 2010
When the story on the SEC’s fraud accusations against Goldman Sachs broke I did wonder what this would mean for that most valuable of the bank’s intangible assets – its reputation. Goldman Sachs itself, I pointed out, had previously noted the dangers of further scrutiny of its activities might present in its most recent 10-k filing
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BLOG: Anyone who pays the Goldman reputation premium is a fool ….
Applicants commonly provoke an interference by copying into their application a claim from someone else’s pending application or issued patent. In Koninklijke Philips Electronics NV v Cardiac Science Operating Co the Federal Circuit explained that the specification used to construe a copied claim depends on the purpose of the construction.
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REPORT: Federal Circuit clarifies standard for construing claims in interference
At the start of the month we published a ranking of the world’s leading life sciences patent litigaiton firms in issue 41 of IAM. Now, the standalone publication that fouses on individual life sciences patent litigators is available online
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BLOG: The best life sciences patent litigators in the world revealed
Both Rambus and Acacia have seen their stock prices rise after reporting their first quarter 2010 results. This continues the trend that I noted on here last year – it’s been a very good 12 to 18 months for NPEs. However, there is a danger to setting too much stall in them as investment targets because their business model is inherently unpredictable
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BLOG: Wall Street still in love with NPEs
As IP monetisation becomes a focus of attention for more companies, so the importance of licensing increases. However, getting a licensing deal done is not the end of the process and is no guarantee in itself that the money will start to flow.
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BLOG: Licensors that do not monitor their licensees can lose a lot of money, says new report