Bonum Certa Men Certa

A Soup of UPC Lies Courtesy of the EPO, Patent Lawyers, and Large Clients (Like Multinational Corporations)

They want everyone to believe that nothing can stop the antidemocratic UPC

UPC impact



Summary: The Unified Patent Court coup, or the effort to push the unitary patent into Europe (using all sorts of different names and false claims), is progressing nicely if the self-fulfilling prophecy attempts are to be believed

WHENEVER we write about technical problems with the EPO we foresee it adopting the low standards of the USPTO (in terms of examination), which may also mean software patents in Europe. One emerging tactic for bringing about software patents is FRAND, which was mentioned in the previous post. Another is the UPC, which just like TPP threatens to bring software patents into Europe (the technicalities of this process were explained here many times before, including yesterday).



The Mirage of Appeals and/or Oppositions (for the Rich)



One problem we have is lack of information about the UPC. As we put it earlier this year, "The Media is Still Awash With Unitary Patent (UPC) Misinformation" and this is still the case. It should not be surprising given the fashion in which EPO officials and European patent lawyers habitually spread deceptive claims. NLO currently repeats EPO lies/spin regarding so-called 'results' [1, 2, 3] or other such statistics that are not complete. To quote: "Opposition before the European Patent Office (EPO) is a powerful tool for challenging the validity of a granted European patent. It is a way of obtaining a central decision of a technically qualified board that applies in all countries in which the patent is valid, thereby saving on litigation costs before individual national courts. Opposition success rates are high. In its most recent annual report (2015), the EPO revealed the chances of having a patent revoked (31%), maintained in amended form (38%) or maintained as granted (31%); 69% of oppositions resulted in a modification in the scope of protection of the challenged patent."

This is similar to PTAB in the US (inter parte reviews), but this overlooks the fact that this process is expensive and laborious. Small patent developers, for example, have neither the time/money nor motivation to pursue such a process. This means that this status quo remains heavily biased and thoroughly tilted against SMEs. Moreover, consider the UPC's likely impact on boards; they could soon be rendered obsolete.

Pretense (or Self-Fulfilling Prophecy) of Italian UPC Ratification



Now, consider what we wrote yesterday about Italian rumours regarding the UPC. The EPO, based on today's marketing, wants everyone to believe that UPC is good. It's not. We wrote about the UPC earlier this month in order to shed light on escalation in such propaganda tactics and now we see even WIPR acting upon hearsay, basing an entire article on patent lawyers who have an agenda and are thus not exactly objective a source for this, as we explained the other day. "According to Trevisan & Cuonzo lawyer Valerio Meucci," wrote the author to a large audience, "the minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation, Paolo Gentiloni, proposed the approval of the draft bill, which the government accepted."

This is a big mistake (if true at all). Italy opposed this for more than half a decade and there were good reasons for this. Some pro-patents people are now spreading this rumour around (they deny bias even though they describe their Twitter account as "Follow us for latest news and developments on European patent law and key milestones on the road to the Unified Patent Court") and one person wrote: "#Italy takes step to ratify #unifiedpatentcourt agreement http://bit.ly/1WUZG3a #upc #ratification"

Based on cited articles [1, 2], there is now a press release. To quote one author's account of it: "According to the official press release, Italy’s ratification of the Unified Patent Court Agreement will help to fight the entry into the European Union of counterfeit goods."

But this does not actually imply ratification and the press release tells an outright lie, as was the case with TPP and TTIP. This mirrors the recent trend of so-called 'trade' deals, which are shrouded in secrecy and benefit from misleading press coverage (if any at all).

UPC Bad for SMEs



The UPC would work against SMEs, even based on a poll conducted by sites which target patent lawyers and other such maximalists. To quote Nordic Patent (connected to Kongstad): "The polls are in, a majority of @ManagingIP followers think the #UPC and #UnitaryPatent are bad for European #SMEs."

Here is what Managing IP (MIP) wrote: "Indeed: 56% say #UPC #UnitaryPatent bad for SMEs in Europe. We will do a more comprehensive survey later this year."

"What's needed is not "a more comprehensive survey" but a survey that does not ask the MIP choir," I told them, to which they replied with: "The MIP choir has a pretty broad spread of voices, as it happens!"

We don't truly think so, but nevertheless, it sure seems like even MIP readers admit that the EPO's claims about UPC being good for SMEs are lies.

More self-Fulfilling Prophecies and US Hopefuls



Based on this tweet, UPC is already here. But it's not. To quote: "Technical teaching for #patent judges. And will the views of the #UPC technical judges have too much weight?"

"Will"? Maybe they mean would. The UPC is not even here yet. To quote what this is based on: "Does this look a bit like what we expect from the long-anticipated Unified Patent Court? The UPC will employ about 50 technical judges alongside a similar number of legally qualified judges."

"The UPC will employ" is wrong. The UPC, if it ever became a reality at all, would do all sorts of things, but given the atmosphere of propaganda (see the SME propaganda above), one shouldn't believe anything at all. Watch how US patent lawyers hold an event about the UPC in the US. They seem to know who the UPC is for and it's not for Europeans. SMEs from Europe won't fly to the US to attend such a conference, one of several such US conferences sponsored by the EPO's PR firm (which just 'happens' to be a US-based firm).

Patent lawyers in the US promote and celebrate the UPC. What does that tell us about who benefits?

Recent Techrights' Posts

Shout-out to Christine From FOSSForce
Who noticed our short story
Apple's MacOS Shows Us the Vision of Computing That GAFAM Has for Us (Digital Prisons)
Freedom means "we the people" should be in control, not people being controlled by corporations (contemporary slaveowners)
GNU/Linux Users Are Not Cheaters
The bottom line is, most cheaters use Windows
 
Microsoft Lost Nearly Half of Its 'Cash Reserves' This Past Year
Is Microsoft (MSFT) the next Intel (INTC)?
The Year Isn't Over Yet, There Will be More Waves of Microsoft Layoffs
Nowadays Microsoft just tries to conflate/equate its energy waste with "value"
Saving the Planet With Honesty, Transparency, and Sharing (Not Only of Computer Code)
GAFAM is destroying the only habitat humans and other animals have and it'll only get worse
The Corporate Media Blasted Bitcoin for Destroying the Planet and Must Do the Same to Incite the Public Against the 'Great Rigging of Wall Street' (Under the Guise of "AI", the Latest Gold Rush)
"AI" is the next "metaverse" (trailing by a few months)
[Video] Richard Stallman is Back to Halo and Gown (in Peru) With 2+ Hours of a Public Talk
The globetrotting Richard Stallman gave many talks at the end of last month
Going Strong Against the Wind
the abuse serves to emphasise or affirm the importance of what we do
Links 04/11/2024: Squashing More Software Patents and Taiwan at Risk
Links for the day
Gemini Links 04/11/2024: Typing vs Writing and a Smol (Net) Pub
Links for the day
Links 04/11/2024: LibreOffice Had Adopted PeerTube, "Hey Hi" Hype is a Threat to the Energy Grids (Worse Than Fake-Coins)
Links for the day
[Meme] Social Control Telescreens With Microphone
Nineteen Eighty-Four
Not Boycotting Apple (Yet)?
"Apple Forces The Signing Of Applications In MacOS Sequoia 15.1"
statCounter This Month: Android Has Nearly Become Twice as Big as Windows
If it happened, it would be an unprecedented milestone
Why Technical Sites Need Not Make Political Recommendations or Endorsements
Except perhaps when it's for some purely technical role, e.g. FCC chief
[Meme] Apple Freedom
Freedom is... the ability to purchase as many 'i' things as you want
"Active" as in One URL, One Emoji, and 4 Words in One Week
Diversity community in Fedora
Apple Vision Pro Has Failed, Just Like "Metaverse"
Vision Pro lacks software
Things That Can Improve Election Integrity
the first two relate to "tech"
Rigging Elections is Difficult, Cheating a Little is Not
Avoid social control media, it is the biggest rigger of all
"People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones"
On throwing stones in a glass house
Our Stance on Electronic (or Digital) Voting Machines
The simple activity of voting and counting ballots does not require thousands of complex machines with hundreds of millions of transistors and hundreds of millions of lines of code
Microsoft and "Retrospective Re-writing of History..."
in YouTube anyone can make stuff up (as one goes along)
This Coming Week
Go exercise your right to vote
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, November 03, 2024
IRC logs for Sunday, November 03, 2024
Reddit is (Still) Lying and Faking
Don't fall for this phony idea that the above sites are grassroots or edgy; they're not
Links 04/11/2024: FCC, Broadband Industry Spar Over Net Neutrality; Software Patent Squashed
Links for the day
Gemini Links 03/11/2024: Official MyGemini.Space Announcement
Links for the day
Gemini Links 03/11/2024: Election Thoughts, Plagiarism, and LLM Slop
Links for the day
Links 03/11/2024: Deere 'Right to Repair' (RoR) and "Threads Bans Anyone For Mentioning Hitler"
Links for the day
[Video] "El Movimiento del Software Libre y el Sistema Operativo GNU" by Richard M. Stallman
The footage is a bit jittery (taken with a phone apparently, and there's no tripod available), but the sound is OK and the words (in Spanish) are comprehensible
Android at New Highs (47%), Windows at New Lows (24%), Suggests Latest Data From statCounter
So the market share of Android is about double that of Windows
[Video] Richard Stallman's Talk in Spanish (in Peru Last Week)
Alternative URLs too
The Media Focuses on the Wrong Scandal
The real scandal at MIT was Gates
Gemini Links 03/11/2024: Fantasy Life Day and Worship
Links for the day
[Meme] Write Us Drivers and GTFO!
When you realise sanctioning BRICS devs goes against the community
Decommissioning Copper Lines Makes Us Less Safe
We've essentially degraded the robustness or reliability of critical systems
Life of an Addicted Lolicon Who Can Also Code
Personal blog as an open diary
[Meme] Reporting Crime is Not a Crime
Obviously!
Manchester Party for Techrights
If you choose to come, of course we'll cover the cost of the food and treats (but not travel)
Privacy is Not a Crime (in Places Where It is a Crime the Regime is Typically Very Rogue)
Also, criminals lack "privacy rights" to hide their crimes from the public
GNU/Linux "Market Share" in Lebanon More Than Doubled in a Few Months
Maybe it's a reaction to something? Assassination in Haret Hreik was in July.
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, November 02, 2024
IRC logs for Saturday, November 02, 2024
Nearly 40 Years Without Security Incidents
People who use Windows have come to sort of "accept" that security incidents are part of life or "normal"
[Meme] The Streisand Effect
Simon says, don't bother trying to suppress facts
Streisand Effect at IBM?
Trying to silence your workers isn't the best approach. It only makes colleagues even more curious.
Microsoft is a Gift That Keeps Giving (Future Stories to Techrights)
Microsoft has been trying to silence me using dirty tricks for nearly 20 years
Elon Musk Has Trashed Twitter for Ideological Reasons (and Propping Up Trump in Exchange for Financial and Political Favours Once in Public Office)
In case you didn't leave Twitter already, consider the fact that Twitter's (or "X"... whatever!) future is uncertain
Wall Street Has Demoted Intel, Seeing There May be No Future to Intel
Intel's loss isn't a loss to us
Free Software Licence Compliance is About Security Too
Linux as de facto proprietary off-the-shelf platform
Links 02/11/2024: Many Fakes in Social Control Media
Links for the day
GNU/Linux Usage Surveys: Up to 6.8% (With ChromeOS, Based on StatCounter) in Desktops/Laptops and Above 2% in Steam
Today StatCounter starts releasing graphs based on data for November
Gemini Links 02/11/2024: Petscop, Jokes, and RetroChallenge
Links for the day
Links 02/11/2024: Temu EU Probe and Shorts Trademark
Links for the day
The "Luddite" Complex
Sometimes simplest is best and sometimes "modern" is designed not with the buyers' interest in mind
SCO's Darl McBride Dead at Age 64
There's hardly any information about it, except we know he reached bankruptcy and 3 years later he died at a relatively young age
The 'Turning-Free-Code-Proprietary Foundation' (Linux/Microsoft Foundation)
LF will basically become just as sinister as its corporate sponsors
[Meme] Python Knows Its Bosses
Microsoft strings attached
Python Software Foundation is 'Cancel Culture' Rehomed
Python isn't grassroots and it doesn't really tolerate grassroots
DeVault "Closes Down His Mailing Lists Every Time There's a Scandal" and Also Censors Messages
Censorious code hosting platform
[Meme] Debt of About $20 Per Active User
Facebook isn't laying off tens of thousands for "efficiency" but for survival
What Social Control Media Really Is
Social Control Media, in a nutshell, isn't just bad if its controller is some foreign or hostile nation
Taking Ethics Lectures From Drew
Projection tactics
Links 02/11/2024: Facebook Stock Falls (Soaring Debt), Apple’s Quarterly Profit Down
Links for the day
Gemini Links 02/11/2024: Burnout, Emacs Bookmarks, and Smooth Migration
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, November 01, 2024
IRC logs for Friday, November 01, 2024