THE LOBBYING activities of the EPO have been covered in nearly a dozen posts so far. IAM's editor in chief foolishly denies that EPO management intervenes in these matters (he told me this after organising a pro-UPC event funded in part by the EPO's PR firm).
"Battistelli acts like a politician. He is still close to Sarkozy, which in some sense disqualifies him or makes him unsuitable for his job."Like every abusive institution, such as the NSA, sociopaths in positions of power are to be expected. They can justify the unthinkable, at least to themselves.
The EPO's President and his bodyguards (yes, plural) are going to London next month. This should be interesting for several reasons. Battistelli and his bodyguards, along with the large (or oversized) lawyers 'industry' of London, will be heavy in attendance, that's for sure, and UPC will be on the agenda, just in time for Brexit debates. The lawyers whom Battistelli et al used to bully me for my reporting on the EPO are also patent lawyers who want UPC. I still have a lot to say about what the EPO did to me after I had pointed out its strong relationship with Microsoft and what Microsoft itself tried to do to me (calling my boss and more). There will be consequences, including greater resentment and increased coverage here. Censorship comes about through fear and I still refuse to be intimidated into silence. The harder one rocks the EPO boat (and gets closer to inducing change), the worse the consequences become. Staff of the EPO surely knows this. There are even suicides (induced by bullying) that serve as a reminder. Big corporations and greased up millionaires/billionaires fight with lawyers, thugs, assassins, PR firms like FTI Consulting, etc. Money matters and they try to play with their pockets, not with minds and words. Depending on which country one speaks out in, the exposed can resort to violent actions. Those who expose them fight only with words. EPO opposition only has words. Soon it might be strikes too; these are a form of expression -- a nonviolent action.
“UNION’s dinners are becoming famous for their mix of good spirit and great speakers and they have surpassed themselves this time with their next dinner on 6th April 2016 featuring EPO President Benoit Battistelli himself.”
--Darren SmythThis new article from Darren Smyth (published this morning) says the "UNION’s dinners are becoming famous for their mix of good spirit and great speakers and they have surpassed themselves this time with their next dinner on 6th April 2016 featuring EPO President Benoit Battistelli himself. In his first public appearances in the UK for a long time, the President will be speaking on the topic “The EPO: Current and future role” and we’re looking forward to a fascinating evening, hosted by UNION President Gwilym Roberts who comments “this is a fantastic opportunity to show Mr Battistelli some British hospitality and hear a little more about future plans for the EPO in an informal and mellow environment”. Full details and tickets can be obtained from EventBrite at https://union-ip-battistelli.eventbrite.co.uk ."
Well, looking at the original site, we find (unsurprisingly) UPC lobbying on the agenda. To quote: "President Battistelli has inherited a giant and complex organisation at a time of great flux both for external reasons, for example the introduction of the UPC, and internal reasons with productivity and operational matters high on the agenda. This is an opportunity for the EPO to explain how it sees its role going forward, and what we can hope for from this major player on the global IP scene."
Regarding our recent claims about EPO lobbying for UPC ("A Patent Office or a Lobbying Firm?"), one person sent us "More on EPO involvement regarding the UPC" (Unitary or Unified Patent Court; the name keeps changing, as it has for more than half a decade).
Days ago I wrote: "The EPO’s boosters (who rub Battistelli’s back) keep insisting that the EPO is not pushing for or touching policy pertaining to the UPC."
That's alluding to the aforementioned IAM editor in chief, who is scrambling to distance himself from his buddy because of negative publicity.
When it comes to the UPC, the EPO has been closely involved from the very beginning. In the legislative proceedings, for instance, Battistelli was repeatedly heard by the European Parliament, wherein he presented his biased views that are self-serving (to the detriment of Europeans). This can be recaptured in the transcript volume published here [PDF] and in the video clips referenced there. He can be seen alongside Klaus-Heiner Lehne, whom we wrote about in past years [1, 2, 3] (early on throughout or preceding Battistelli's presidency). Back then, i.e. about 6 years ago, Klaus-Heiner Lehne called it "unitary EU patent" (it kept changing names, going back to the days of Michel Barnier and Charlie McCreevy as chief proponents).
The bottom line is, EPO isn't a patent office but also an instrument of lobbying. Battistelli appears to have taken this to new levels, working alongside horrible people such as Klaus-Heiner Lehne (see our past articles about him). ⬆