05.15.18

EPO Has Become Overzealous About Software Patents, Probably More So Than Almost Anywhere Else

Posted in Europe, Patents at 4:52 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Software patents in Europe

Summary: The promotion of an extreme patent regime in Europe continues unabated; whether it succeeds or not depends on what EPO examiners and citizens of Europe can do

THE patent extremists have lost their moral compass and have sunk to an ethical abyss. We habitually cover this in relation to American law firms, but in Europe there’s some of that too.

“Radio silence unless/until the EPO dedicates some budget for PR firms to flood the media with advertisements for the European Inventor Award (which the EPO promotes in Twitter about half a dozen times per day).”Earlier today we saw a firm of UPC boosters advertising a “Seminar” about something which does not even exist: “German and UPC patent infringement litigation proceedings” (the page is in German).

The EPO was meanwhile (earlier today) pushing for software patents in the US ahead of the other ‘seminar’ (even if software patents in Europe are generally not allowed). They will probably advise people to use all sorts of buzzwords (like the AI hype promoted some hours ago at IP Watch). Why does the media not raise this issue, let alone the EPO scandals and corruption? Finnegan is reposting/cross-posting this puff piece that we mentioned last week in another site, but there was no other news about the EPO today. Radio silence unless/until the EPO dedicates some budget for PR firms to flood the media with advertisements for the European Inventor Award (which the EPO promotes in Twitter about half a dozen times per day).

As we noted some days ago, KIPO and South Korean press nowadays repeat EPO-funded propaganda in favour of software patents. There’s an EPO push for software patents these days, they just refer to these as “4IR” or whatever. As IAM explained some hours ago, patent trolls have begun coming out of Korea:

Last month this blog reported on Firstface, an apparent NPE headquartered in Seoul which recently brought patent infringement complaints against both Apple and Samsung in the United States. A new set of statistics released by the Korean Intellectual Property Office (KIPO) show that this is not an isolated case, but part of an unambiguous trend. In conjunction with the Korea Intellectual Property Protection Agency, KIPO prepares a detailed annual report on US patent litigation involving Korean entities. Overall, 2017 was a busier year than 2016 for in-house patent counsel in Korean firms.

In general, KIPO does not allow patents on algorithms.

Software patents are not allowed in India either, but similar loopholes exist there (European says “as such” and India says “per se”). Earlier today a news site spoke about Newgen Software as follows:

It has four patents registered in India and 28 outstanding patent applications in India and two outstanding patent applications in the USA.

Forget about it. Such patents are not allowed and would not be accepted by courts. Neither in India nor in the US after 2014 (Alice, USPTO, Section 101). As for the UPC, it’s generally regarded/considered to be a Trojan horse for software patents in the whole of Europe, bypassing national patent laws/policies. It is just as insane as that sounds. █

Share this post: These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages.

Permalink Mail Send this to a friend

If you liked this post, consider subscribing to the RSS feed or join us now at the IRC channels.

Pages that cross-reference this one

You must be logged in to post a comment.

What Else is New

The Attacks on the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) Have Lost Momentum and the Patent Microcosm Begrudgingly Gives Up

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), reaffirmed by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) and now the Supreme Court as well, carries on preventing frivolous lawsuits; options for stopping PTAB have nearly been exhausted and it shows
Software Patenting and Successful Litigation a Very Difficult Task Under 35 U.S.C. § 101

Using loads of misleading terms or buzzwords such as "AI" the patent microcosm continues its software patents pursuits; but that's mostly failing, especially when courts come to assess pertinent claims made in the patents
António Campinos Will Push Toward a France-Based Unified Patent Court (UPC)

Frenchmen at EPO will try hard to bring momentum if not force to the Unified Patent Court; facts, however, aren't on their side (unlike Team UPC, which was always on Team Battistelli's side)
In Apple v Samsung Patents That Should Never Have Been Granted May Result in a Billion Dollars in 'Damages'

A roundup of news about Apple and its patent cases (especially Apple v Samsung), including Intel's role trying to intervene in Qualcomm v Apple
Links 20/5/2018: KDevelop 5.2.2 and 5.2.3, FreeBSD 11.2 Beta 2

Links for the day
Aurélien Pétiaud's ILO Case (EPO Appeal) an Early Sign That ILO Protects Abusers and Power, Not Workers

A famous EPO ‘disciplinary’ case is recalled; it’s another one of those EPO-leaning rulings from AT-ILO, which not only praises Battistelli amid very serious abuses but also lies on his behalf, leaving workers with no real access to justice but a mere illusion thereof
LOT Network is a Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

Another reminder that the "LOT" is a whole lot more than it claims to be and in effect a reinforcer of the status quo
'Nokification' in Hong Kong and China (PRC)

Chinese firms that are struggling resort to patent litigation, in effect repeating the same misguided trajectories which became so notorious in Western nations because they act as a form of taxation, discouraging actual innovation
CIPU is Amplifying Misleading Propaganda From the Chamber of Commerce

Another lobbying event is set up to alarm lawmakers and officials, telling them that the US dropped from first to twelfth using some dodgy yardstick which favours patent extremists
Patent Law Firms That Profit From Software Patent Applications and Lawsuits Still 'Pull a Berkheimer' to Attract Business in Vain

The Alice-inspired (Supreme Court) 35 U.S.C. § 101 remains unchanged, but the patent microcosm endlessly mentions a months-old decision from a lower court (than the Supreme Court) to 'sell' the impression that everything is changing and software patents have just found their 'teeth' again
A Year After TC Heartland the Patent Microcosm is Trying to 'Dilute' This Supreme Court's Decision or Work Around It

IAM, Patent Docs, Managing IP and Patently-O want more litigation (especially somewhere like the Eastern District of Texas), so in an effort to twist TC Heartland they latch onto ZTE and BigCommerce cases
Microsoft Attacks the Vulnerable Using Software Patents in Order to Maintain Fear and Give the Perception of Microsoft 'Safety'

The latest patent lawsuits from Microsoft and its patent trolls (which it financially backs); these are aimed at feeble and vulnerable rivals of Microsoft
Links 19/5/2018: Mesa 18.0.4 and Vim 8.1

Links for the day
Système Battistelli (ENArque) at the EPO is Inspired by Système Lamy in Saint-Germain-en Laye

Has the political culture of Battistelli's hometown in France contaminated the governance of the EPO?
In Australia the Productivity Commission Decides/Guides Patent Law

IP Australia, the patent office of Australia, considers abolishing "innovation patents" but has not done so yet (pending consultation)
Fishy Things Noticed Ahead of the Passage of a Lot of EPO Budget (Applicants' Money) to Battistelli's Other (and Simultaneous) Employer

Observations and odd facts regarding the affairs of the council in St Germain; it certainly looks like Battistelli as deputy mayor and the mayor (Arnaud Péricard) are attempting to hide something
Links 18/5/2018: AsteroidOS 1.0 Released, More Snyk/Black Duck FUD

Links for the day
Today's EPO Financially Rewards Abuses and Violations of the Law

Battistelli shredded the European Patent Convention (EPC) to pieces and he is being rewarded for it, perpetuating a pattern of abuses (and much worse) being rewarded by the European Patent Organisation
So-Called 'System Battistelli' is Destroying the EPO, Warn Insiders

Low-quality patent grants by the EPO are a road to nowhere but a litigious climate in Europe and an unattractive EPO
Rise in Patent Trolls' Activity in Germany Noted Amid Declining Patent Quality at the EPO

The UPC would turn Europe into some sort of litigation ‘super-state’ — one in which national patent laws are overridden by some central, immune-from-the-law bureaucracy like the EPO; but thankfully the UPC continues its slow collapse
EPO's Battistelli Taking Days Off Work for Political 'Duties' (Parties) in His French Theatre Where He'll Bring Buckets of EPO Budget (EPO Stakeholders' Money)

More tales from Saint-Germain-en-Laye...
Links 16/5/2018: Cockpit 168, GCompris 0.91, DHCP Bug

Links for the day
The EPO's 'Inventor Award' Scam: Part III

An addendum to the "inventor of the year" affair, namely the case of Remmal
Apple and Microsoft Are Still Suing Companies -- Using Patents of Course -- Which 'Dare' Compete (by Leveraging GNU/Linux)

The vanity of proprietary software giants — as the latest news serves to reveal — targeting companies with patent lawsuits, both directly and indirectly
The Anti-PTAB (Patent Quality), Anti-§ 101 Lobby is Losing Its Mind and It Has Become Amusing to Observe

The rants about the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB), the courts and even the law itself have reached laughable levels; this reveals that the real agenda of patent maximalists is endless litigation and their methods boil down to those of an angry mob, not legal professionals
EPO Has Become Overzealous About Software Patents, Probably More So Than Almost Anywhere Else

The promotion of an extreme patent regime in Europe continues unabated; whether it succeeds or not depends on what EPO examiners and citizens of Europe can do
Links 15/5/2018: Black Duck's Latest FUD and the EFF's EFFail FUD Debunked Further

Links for the day
Xiaomi, Samsung, TCL and Others Demonstrate That in a World With an Abundance of Stupid Patents Like Design Patents Nobody is Safe

The "Cult of Patents" (typically a cabal of law firms looking to have everything on the planet patented) has created a battlefield in the mobile world; every company, once it gets big enough, faces a lot of patent lawsuits and dying companies resort to using whatever is in their "portfolio" to destroy everyone else inside the courtroom (or demand 'protection' money to avert lawsuits)
A Google-Centric and Google-Led Patent Pool Won't Protect GNU/Linux But Merely 'Normalise' Software Patents

Patent pools, which are basically the wrong solution to a very clear problem, continue to expand and promote themselves; the real solution, however, is elimination of abstract patents, notably software patents
The Patent Microcosm is Still Looking for Ways to Bypass CAFC/PTAB Invalidation of Many US Patents

In pursuit of patent maximalism (i.e. a status quo wherein US patents — no matter their age — are presumed valid and beyond scrutiny) pundits resort to new angles or attack vectors, ranging from the bottom (IPRs) to the top (Supreme Court)