Left unchallenged, lies can stick. We urge all of our readers -- no matter where they are from -- to pressure media to properly cover what's really going on inside the EPO (the important story, not PR) because the EPO's unethical PR team sure is pressuring journalists right now, backed by a massive PR agency. Journalists can hopefully pay attention to both sides of the argument, not just paid PR people. We already see some Wall Street media and other financial media playing along with this propaganda. We also see some general news sites going along with this [1, 2, 3, 4], not to mention patent maximalists [1, 2, 3] (some horrible spin there, including UPC propaganda from EPO-funded sites like IAM, paid through FTI Consulting).

"It would do nothing but exacerbate "social unrest in the organisation." That's what yellow unions (or the perception thereof) lead to."The above article (screenshot at the top), just published by IP Watch after a previous (very recent) puff piece, refers to what looks like a yellow union as follows: "The EPO president also announced the signature of an agreement with one trade union against a background of social unrest in the organisation."

It would do nothing but exacerbate "social unrest in the organisation." That's what yellow unions (or the perception thereof) lead to. Just how much damage does Battistelli intend to cause before he finally jumps ship (even against his will)? As this new comment has just put it: "FFPE-EPO statute exists only in Dutch. Its Art. 3(1) allows membership only for ambtenaar van EOB bij de vestiging Den Haag. (Employees in The Hague)"

"Battistelli's spin is getting not only ridiculous but also outright laughable."Battistelli will be left red-faced/blush when we finally do our detailed stories about the small trade union and his secret salary that Kongstad kept approving (it's still a secret by the way). In the above interview/article Battistelli said about the grim situation (with the Council) that "these allegations were the result of a defamation campaign," but he didn't say these were false. Battistelli also "said his salary is €300,000 per year,” according to IP Watch, but he’s going to regret saying that. "Battistelli said he never thought patent were the only solution," IP Watch noted towards the end. Well, ask him about software patents and copyrights then. Why does the Battistelli-led EPO keep promoting (and often granting) software patents in Europe when software developers like myself almost unequivocally want just copyrights? Why is he ignoring the EPC -- on the basis of which the EPO exists in the first place? Why does he snub European law and international law?

Battistelli's spin is getting not only ridiculous but also outright laughable. Battistelli was "underlining that there had been no strikes in 2015," according to IP Watch. That's a classic straw man argument. He said nothing about an all-time high in protests and he also hopes nobody will notice the imminent strike that he's trying to crush along with his Iron Lady (Bergot).

We found it funny that Battistelli resorts to the old/outdated/typical propaganda points which we tackled here before. He uses “ISO9001 certification” for bragging rights (compared to other continents!), but ISO is Swiss (Europe!) and in our assessment it is deeply corrupt (you pay for what you get!). Why has the Switzerland-based IP Watch once again done such shallow or shoddy journalism? The site is usually decent, but not when it comes to EPO. Not anymore anyway...

"We found it funny that Battistelli resorts to the old/outdated/typical propaganda points which we tackled here before.""The backlog decreased by 66 percent," IP Watch says about Battistelli's claims, but it didn't explain how. Rubber-stamping of applications en masse? As per this leak?

"According to Battistelli," IP Watch added, "reforms started to pay off in 2015. In terms of production, there was an increase of 14 percent in the number of files treated in one year. Patents granted and published rose by 6 percent, he said."

"Battistelli is to the EPO what Nixon or Bush were to US and watch/recall which political party and politicians Battistelli is affiliated with in France."See the above leak. Battistelli is killing the EPO pretty fast. The EPO under Battistelli now embraces the USPTO approach, which is grant (almost) everything, and fast! Whatever is left behind Battistelli when he leaves the EPO is a big mess that needs cleaning up, including patent quality. "EP" patents now include a lot of low-quality patents which Battistelli is evidently in denial about (even when European courts invalidate these).

Finally, Battistelli says EPO “is the best in the world in terms of quality," but he means WAS, not is. The EPO has become Europe's shame/embarrassment for many reasons and he put an end to its worldwide leadership. He took all the golden eggs and squeezed to death the goose, probably in order to give the impression that he was "successful". He's a "wartime President" by his own choice/making. What a horrible President. Battistelli is to the EPO what Nixon or Bush were to US and watch/recall which political party and politicians Battistelli is affiliated with in France. It figures. ⬆