Bonum Certa Men Certa

Tall Tales From the Land of EPOnia: Indications of High-Level Club Med/EUIPO “Entryism”

Half a year ago: The European Council Fulfills Corrupt Battistelli's Alleged Promise, Making Christian Archambeau Head of EUIPO

Piggyback



Summary: Guest post about EPO nepotism, the second generation under António Campinos, whom Battistelli put in charge

On March 27, 2019, an announcement appeared on the European Patent Office (EPO) Intranet from the "Vice-President Corporate Services" informing staff about the appointment of a CIO and CTO in the new Business Information Technology (BIT) area.



Once upon a time in EPOnia, the Vice-President of DG4 had the title "Vice-President Administration" and instead of BIT there used to be something like "IT Services" until that also fell victim to the buzzword-of-the-month renaming craze. That was back in the good old days of yore before EPOnia had succumbed to the Battistelli-led "managerialist" coup d'état.

But enough of the nostalgia and let's get back to the story. The lucky appointees referred to in yesterday's "Corporate Services" announcement were named as Mr Diego Eguidazu Alonso (CIO) (profile in LinkedIn) and Mr Angel Aledo Lopez (CTO) (profile in LinkedIn).

DIEGO EGUIDAZU
Diego Eguidazu Alonso



On the face of it, it seems like just another non-story from a slow news day. But scratching below the surface reveals some interesting details which suggest that this may be part of a larger scale "entryist" operation by the Club Med/EUIPO faction.

The fact that both appointees have Spanish-sounding names is an interesting coincidence but it doesn't really take us very far. However, thanks to LinkedIn, it can be established that Mr Eguidazu worked at EUIPO (formerly OHIM) in Alicante for almost 17 years until he was parachuted into the EPO as "Director of Service Operations" in August 2018. In other words: shortly after the current EPO President had moved to Munich and was getting ready for his first appearance at the Oktoberfest.

Campinos in Oktoberfest 2018
Campinos in Oktoberfest 2018



Mr Aledo seems to be more publicity-shy. His LinkedIn page is minimalistic to say the least. It contains little or no information apart from an entry for "Deputy CIO European Patent Office" which seems to refer to his new appointment. There are no details about his previous experience.

"Once upon a time in EPOnia, the Vice-President of DG4 had the title "Vice-President Administration" and instead of BIT there used to be something like "IT Services" until that also fell victim to the buzzword-of-the-month renaming craze."To find out more about this, it may help to consult a recent edition of the official directory of the EU, dated 18 March 2019, which provides some vital clues as to what is going on here. On the pages listing details of EUIPO personnel we find the following:

Business Information Technology Department

Ms Niloofar SIMON Director Architecture and Planning

Mr Diego EGUIDAZU Head of Service Service "Applications Development and Maintenance"

Mr Raymond KLAASEN Head of Service Operations and Infrastructure

Mr Angel ALEDO Head of Service

The information contained in the "EU WhoIsWho" directory seems to be a bit stale.

"...scratching below the surface reveals some interesting details which suggest that this may be part of a larger scale "entryist" operation by the Club Med/EUIPO faction."Apparently, the EU administration dweebs who compile this directory haven't yet woken up to the fact that Ms Niloofar "Nellie" Simon has flown the coop to rejoin her former EUIPO boss on the 10th floor of the EPO Munich headquarters in the swish no-expense-spared luxury penthouse designed for its previous occupant by the prestigious a+p Architekten of Munich.

But even if the information in the EU directory is not up-to-date, it is still helpful for joining up the dots.

It seems that not only has Nellie the Elephant packed her trunk and said goodbye to the EUIPO circus in Alicante.

In the process of trundling off to the EPO jungle in Munich to hook up with the head of the herd, she has also managed to piggyback in most of the senior members of the EUIPO IT team.

It's a scenario reminiscent of the cover of Anthony Browne's "Piggybook", a children's storybook which has been translated into Portuguese by Isabelle Buratti.

The Buratti-Campinos romantic saga is a tale of its own which probably deserves coverage at a later date but, as they say, it's a story for another day.

"In the process of trundling off to the EPO jungle in Munich to hook up with the head of the herd, she has also managed to piggyback in most of the senior members of the EUIPO IT team."Looking at this carefully choreographed "entryist" operation, one has to feel sorry for poor old Raymond Klaasen who must be feeling lonely having been left "tout seul" looking after the EUIPO IT ranch down in Alicante.

Let's hope that the EUIPO's IT systems don't suffer a breakdown after such a massive haemmorhaging of talent. Otherwise someone might have to face the music and dance a last waltz as recently happened at the Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial (INPI) in Portugal. Reliable sources in Lisbon report the downfall of the delightful Maria Leonor Mendes da Trindade, who inherited the mantle of Campinos as director of the Lusitanian INPI and was one of Battistelli's dutiful Club Med chinchillas on the EPO Administrative Council. Apparently Ms Mendes da Trindade and her deputy Marco Dinis were obliged to fall on their swords following a serious IT system malfunction which occurred over a prolonged period during last summer's heatwave in the Portuguese capital. We plan to revisit this rather tragic "conte cruel" in more detail in the not-too-distant future and hopefully look into further shenanigans at the INPI in Lisbon, some of it dating back to the days when the current monarch of EPOnia held sway there.

For EPO insiders, the latest daring "entryist" escapade at the EPO awakens memories of Battistelli's wholesale importation of former INPI personnel and cronies including René Kraft, as reported by Techrights back in 2015.

"For EPO insiders, the latest daring "entryist" escapade at the EPO awakens memories of Battistelli's wholesale importation of former INPI personnel and cronies..."According to Mr Kraft's LinkedIn profile, he previously worked with Informatique CDC, an IT provider which has close links to the French INPI.

Informatique CDC has hit the headlines in the past, amongst other things for its questionable labour practices and breaches of French sub-contracting law (so-called "délit de marchandage") [1, 2].

Informatique CDC



In the meantime, poor old Mr Kraft seems to have been swept aside by the recent Club Med/EUIPO influx of "new bloods". According to insiders, he has ended up being parked on the sidelines as a "Principal Advisor for IT Matters". As they say in the land of EPOnia, you'd better be careful if you get "honored" with a fancy job title because more often than not it's an advance warning that you are being lined up for the long drop...

And so today's tall tale draws to its close but make sure to stay tuned because some more entertaining anecdotes from the land of EPOnia are in the pipeline and are planned to hit the presses soon.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Preparations for Our 19th Anniversary Have Already Begun
When we get back we'll probably sort out some balloons and venue for the next party
Pleased After 2 Years With team.blue
Moving from a Content Management System (CMS, dynamic) to a Static Site Generator (SSG) was a wise decision that made life so much easier
The Free Software Foundation (FSF) is Being Attacked by Organisations Jealous of Its Principled Stance and Longevity
Nobody is perfect, but imperfection does not instantaneously imply sinister intent
Many Microsoft "Assets" Are Fabricated Baloney (to Game the Numbers)
At times it seems like what we deal with are many weak patents (on algorithms), valuations or speculations based on hype ("hey hi"), and stocks held by Microsoft and its own staff
"Internal Changes at Red Hat / IBM"
It seems like quite a few people are leaving
Confirmed in French Media: Mass Layoffs (10% Culled) in Microsoft France
Now some reports in French
 
Gemini Links 03/09/2025: calendar.txt, Alhena 5.3.1, and ROOPHLOCH
Links for the day
The Theory That the Man From McKinsey, Whom Red Hat Took From Microsoft a Month Ago as Executive, Wants 'Efficiency' (Lower Salaries)
So far... no "official" word
When Your Site's Articles Are Being 'Cheapened' by Slop as Feature Images
Dr. Farnell should become an advisor to The Register MS
Certificate Authority Let's Encrypt Drops to Only Half a Dozen Capsules and 0.2% of the Whole in Geminispace, Self-Signed is the Way to Go
It used to have hundreds, according to Lupa
Doing to Red Hat What They Already Did (and Still Do) to IBM
there seems to be a drive to hire cheaper staff, and it may be led by somebody Red Hat hired from Microsoft
Links 03/09/2025: Salesforce's Latest Mass Layoffs, 93% in Large Poll at The Register MS Say UK Government Should Dump Microsoft
Links for the day
If You Reject the Google Verdict in the US, Then You Should Also Reject the "Modern" Web (Do Something About It)
Gemini Protocol is still open; it cannot be hijacked or subverted because it's frozen by design and by intention
Open Source Initiative IRS Filing: Almost All the Money is Corporate, Stefano Maffuli (Executive Director) Takes About a Quarter of That Money for Openwashing of "AI" Ponzi Scheme
OSI is currently little but a PR/marketing agency of Microsoft
Many People Are "Leaving" Red Hat, Even High-Level Managers
Something is definitely going on at Red Hat
Techrights Has Been Subjected to Calls of Violence (and Death Threats), It Never Condoned Violence
I have no sympathy for people who call violence "free speech" and then get in trouble
Condoning Violent Behaviour and "Free Speech"
perhaps Microsoft Lunduke lost touch with what constitutes violence
Takeaway From the Google Verdict: GAFAM Has Too Much Control (Even Over the US Government and Courts With Government Appointees)
Many people feel disappointed but hardly surprised by the verdict
The Free Software Foundation (FSF) Turns 40 in One Month
As noted a few days ago, several times in fact, many people now recognise the importance of the FSF's mission, even if most people don't know what the FSF is
"Voluntary" Layoffs at Microsoft (to Game the Numbers, Sugar-Coating a Crisis)
"Employees interested have until the end of October to volunteer."
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, September 02, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, September 02, 2025
Links 02/09/2025: Oligarch Tech and Text Encoding Concerns in Ada
Links for the day
"People on LinkedIn Saying That They've Left Red Hat."
We already saw signs of it a month ago and named some of the people
Gone With the BRICs (or BRICS): "Linux 8" in Cuba
GAFAM must be worried
Telecompaper Reports Microsoft to Reduce the Workforce by Another 10% (in France)
Imagine what this will do to staff's morale
Microsoft in Freefall in Finland
Can Finland eradicate Windows from all its infrastructure, including core operations that are sensitive to sabotage by cracking?
Google's Chrome Passes 70% and Web Standards Are Dying
The Web is quickly becoming devoid of any standards
India is Back to Windows 8 (Market Share Down to 8%) as Android Soars to a New Record High
For Microsoft, India is a runaway market
Slopwatch: Plagiarism and Ponzi Scheme, Bubble About to Burst Entirely, Admits Goldman Sachs
the hype that Google News and The Register MS actively participate and profit from
Links 02/09/2025: SCO Summit and Russia Suspected Of Jamming GPS
Links for the day
Gemini Links 02/09/2025: Mediterranean Marriage and Staying Connected at 35,000 Feet
Links for the day
The Register MS Says "AI Web Crawlers Are Destroying Websites", So Why Does The Register MS Help 'AI' Companies? (Spoiler: Money)
People need to call out The Register MS on its hypocrisy
Slopfarms Already Peaked, They Will Die When Slop Companies Run Out of Money to Borrow
slopfarms will lack an actual "engine"
Links 02/09/2025: Attacks on Unions, Microsoft TCO, and DDoSing a Growing Problem
Links for the day
Why We Publish Information About the SLAPPs (But Not About the Legal Process), an Abuse of Process by Americans Trying to Silence Critics of Their Employer, Microsoft
It doesn't take thousands of pages to explain something simple
Internet Relay Chat Didn't Fall Off a Cliff
IRC will turn 40 in less than 3 years from now
The UEFI 9/11 - Part V - This is Not a Drill (Disable "SecureBoot" Now)
A "9/11" Coming
There's No Obligation to Speak to Anybody
The very fact that "bkuhn" is till spending time in social control media says a lot about his poor judgment
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, September 01, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, September 01, 2025
Microsoft Trying to Force People to Resign (Amid Mass Layoffs) a Strategy That Takes Its Toll
Microsoft seems to be circling down the drain and the "final flush" will be the moment the "hey hi" (AI) bubble implodes completely
Google Simply Cannot Be Trusted
Only fools would trust GAFAM
Admission That a Third Party (or Parties) Funds the SLAPPs Against Techrights
This can end up costing them over a million dollars
Modifying and Writing One's Own Computer Programs is Not a Crime (or: Google Proves That Stallman Was Right)
We're generally gratified to see so many positive mentions of him
Why We Stopped Publishing Videos (for Now)
We'll probably get back to videos one day, but it's hard to say when or to what extent
What Animal Rights Activism Teaches Us About Sympathy and Focus
It's possible to believe that the planet is warming, that we must do something about it, and still eat eggs and butter
When You Turn Web Sites About Tech Into Political Sites
A lot of people fall into the trap of catering only for particular groups
Gemini Links 02/09/2025: ROOPHLOCH 2025 and Lagrange 1.19 Released
Links for the day
Gemini Links 01/09/2025: News Corp. WSJ and A Month With NixOS
Links for the day
“Sideloading” Never Killed Anybody
There are many online discussions this week about the misnomer "sideloading"
Slopwatch: Google News as FUD Vector Against Linux and Plagiarism Enhancer, Serial Slopper (SS) Uses LLMs to Googlebomb "Linux"
Slop destroys the Web not just by screwing with search engines and helping plagiarists. It's also responsible for de facto DDoS attacks...
Links 01/09/2025: "Attacks on Science" and China's "Soft Power" Grows
Links for the day
Links 01/09/2025: Fresh Backlash Against Slop and "Norway’s Electricity Crisis is About to Hit Britain"
Links for the day
Writing and Coding Isn't Always Enough
Last year we had to assume a role we didn't have before: litigants
Links 01/09/2025: Catching Up (Mostly via Deutsche Welle), "Windows TCO" Effect in UK
Links for the day
Gemini Links 01/09/2025: Linguistic Barriers and "Web 1.0 Hosting"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, August 31, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, August 31, 2025
Autumn Has Come
Autumn should be exciting in all sorts of ways; it'll also mark our anniversary
The UEFI 9/11 - Part IV - External Interference
They all seem to be playing a role in crushing Software Freedom and self-determination for users