Bonum Certa Men Certa

New Survey Shows That Even Patent Professionals Know That Team UPC is Lying About Unitary Patent Roadmaps

Team UPC is fooling/successfully misleading almost nobody but is still lying to everyone, finds/infers a new WIPR survey

Dave Croston in Financial Director
One example of plenty more fake news about the UPC (e.g. [1, 2, 3]), courtesy of those who stand to profit from legal Armageddon



Summary: The "Unified Patent Court (UPC) is unlikely to become operational by December 2017 [according to] nearly three-quarters of WIPR readers," but Team UPC continues to spread lies

JUST earlier this month WIPR published the results of a survey about the UPC, which emboldened us and reinforced our predictions. See our post titled "New WIPR Survey and Other Data Points Suggest That the Unitary Patent (UPC) is Dead, at Least in the UK".



“...it's time MPs talked about it, understood it and explained it - too important not to be publicly scrutinised...”
      --David Brooke
I spoke to someone from WIPR today (David Brooke). He said that he would "hardly think any MPs know what the upc is - pro or anti Brexit. not even sure carswell does either..."

"It's not simple to explain," I told him, and he agreed, adding that "it's time MPs talked about it, understood it and explained it - too important not to be publicly scrutinised..."

Max Walters‏, another frequent writer on the matter (not a patent practitioner, but one with profound understanding of the subject) weighed in and said: "They know that it can involve the CJEU. For some that should be enough..."

He also said: "How can it be ratified without a vote?"

“They know that it can involve the CJEU. For some that should be enough...”
      --Max Walters‏
"The concern is," I explained, "people who vote might know nothing about it except what CIPA (front group) says [...] that it's good for SMEs yada yada..." (that's a famous lie about the UPC).

Walters‏ then asked: "Didn't the IP Bill also give the sec of state power to ratify?"

FFII is currently trying to figure out the process and we are speaking with them about it.

Days ago Walters‏ wrote (adding a screenshot): "Still no MPs declaring support for Douglas Carswell's anti #UPC motion. Have to say I'm somewhat surprised by this..."

"They try to disseminate mere belief (false belief) that the UPC is unstoppable (just a matter of time), inevitable (a question of when, not if), and even desirable.""Not surprising given that they're not aware of what #upc does," I told him, "how patent law works, and #cipa lies to them..."

We still have some time to explain this to them. In a new survey, just published at the end of February, it is made abundantly apparent that WIPR's audience -- probably patent professionals in the UK for the most part -- is agreeing with what surveys previously showed. People in the profession don't swallow all the lies of Team UPC, which is just lying through its teeth with fake news in order to bamboozle politicians into a Unitary Patent hop. They try to disseminate mere belief (false belief) that the UPC is unstoppable (just a matter of time), inevitable (a question of when, not if), and even desirable. Here is what the new survey says:

The Unified Patent Court (UPC) is unlikely to become operational by December 2017, as predicted, according to nearly three-quarters of WIPR readers.

In January, WIPR reported that the UPC preparatory committee announced that the court can become operational in December this year.

And one reader said: “I have confidence that the UPC will be operational in December but uncertainties related to Brexit diminish its use.”

But most readers weren’t quite as optimistic. One major spanner in the works, they said, is Brexit.

UK Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit speech in January sparked concerns that the UK may seek to leave the UPC after Brexit.

“We do not seek to hold on to bits of membership as we leave,” said May, setting out a 12-step plan that the UK government will use for negotiating Brexit terms.


A question less loaded would not presume that it's just a matter of time. It might never happen at all. Most WIPR readers previously said so.

"A question less loaded would not presume that it's just a matter of time. It might never happen at all. Most WIPR readers previously said so."What does Team UPC do and say in the mean time? Have a look at Bristows with its villainous lobbying blog. It says "The Unified Patent Court is still on track to open in December 2017."

That's a lie. But keep repeating it, Bristows, and maybe some gullible politicians will actually believe you. Bristows is a truly nasty firm and anyone seeking an honest advice from them would be well advised to avoid.

"Imagine what would happen if we empowered and equipped large (often foreign) firms with injunctions Europe-wide."The only thing the UPC would bring to Europe (and the UK, if it ever miraculously passes and pervades) is patent trolls, more patent litigation, higher damages, and more patent injunctions. The London-based IAM would certainly love it; it even got paid to promote the UPC!

Imagine what would happen if we empowered and equipped large (often foreign) firms with injunctions Europe-wide. Imagine no more!

There are patent raids in Europe and IAM seems rather thrilled about it [1, 2]. The Mobile World Congress was supposed to be all fun and showcases (a couple of days ago), but instead there are raids to come. IAM wrote: "Barcelona court orders seizure of phones at Mobile World Congress over possible infringement of Fractus patent. [...] Phones were being displayed at the event by French and Chinese companies. Fractus applied for the order last week."

"It's not hard to see who such a system is desirable to as SMEs rarely operate in more than one nation anyway."That's a case of "I steal all your phones, because I allege you infringe some patents (in a rush, hardly a chance for defense!)."

Laws for the rich and powerful? That's UPC. And the above new story is a cautionary tale. Imagine what patent trolls would do with such powers; one ruling in one European city would be applicable not just in the EU but also beyond! It's not hard to see who such a system is desirable to as SMEs rarely operate in more than one nation anyway.

Recent Techrights' Posts

If Matthias Kirschner Loves Free Software, He'll Change the Name of the Microsoft-Sponsored Organisation He Governs (in Order to Avoid Confusion)
The FSF-EEE does not really like Software Freedom, it just loves money (including Microsoft's)
EPO's Local Occupational Health, Safety and Ergonomics Committee (LOHSEC) in The Hague: Workers Are Getting Sicker, Conditions in Which to Assess Patent Applications Deteriorate
"According to the Office statistics the total number of days of absence has gone up from 12.4 to 13.1 total number of sick days per Full Time Equivalent (FTE) from 2023 to 2024."
The Standard Needs to Improve Its Standards for Fact-Checking, Aaron Swartz Had Nothing to Do With Reddit and He Detested the Company That Created It
The Web is already bad enough as it is
New Paper From the EPO Highlights Large-Scale Discrimination at the Office, Where People Are Rewarded for Granting More and More Illegal Patents
Even the Kremlin is probably more competent than this
The Ultimate and Inevitable Fall of OpenAI (Even Brave is 'Bigger' Now)
"When you advertise at the Super Bowl, you’ve reached just about every consumer in America. It’s the last stop. If you’re not profitable yet, you never will be."
 
Scheduled Maintenance Tomorrow and on Valentines
If the site (or Gemini capsule) is offline for a bit, the maintenance windows are likely the root cause
Soylent News Lessens the Scope of Discussion Due to Persistent Trolling and Online Abuse
if they make it a lot harder for new people to participate, then they limit the "general appeal" and reach
When the Livestream of Richard Stallman is Apparently Bury-Brigaded Offline You Finally Learn to Avoid Google/YouTube for Streaming
Please, people, stop uploading to Google/YouTube
Links 10/02/2025: Ban on D.E.I. Language, Listeria Risk/Outbreak
Links for the day
Links 10/02/2025: Announcing "Stringless" and Mental Health Improvement
Links for the day
Links 10/02/2025: Facebook Mass Layoffs, "Meta" Did What Aaron Swartz Had Done But to the Tune of 81.7 Terabytes
Links for the day
Microsoft Tarnishing the Brand of Arch
Of course Arch can do whatever it wants, but being associated with Microsoft is a badge of shame
Adding Slop to Your Blog Only Makes One Assume All the Text is LLM Slop
Simon Coter from Oracle has turned to slop
Macao is Leaving Microsoft Behind
Windows is falling to new all-time lows
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, February 09, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, February 09, 2025
Microsoft's WSL (LSW) Shows That It Can Never Love Linux, Only Windows
that's just how Microsoft rolls
Activism in Times of War and a Coup
'Linux' Foundation works for fascism
What the Silencing of Neatnik Tells Us About Linus Torvalds Inside a Microsoft-Dominated 'Linux' Foundation
Is Linus Torvalds free to express his mind as he wishes about every topic, even just any technical topic?
Windows Down to 11.35% in Senegal, as Measured by statCounter
Another all-time low (Windows was at 99% in 2009)
"Latest Technology News" in BetaNews is LLM Slop Promoting OOXML and Proprietary Software at the Expense of LibreOffice and OpenDocument Format (ODF)
Remember that "open-source" and Open Source aren't the same; the former is fake
Links 09/02/2025: Coffee, Toxic Productivity, and Programming
Links for the day
Debian's Human Rights violations & Swiss women Nazi symbolism
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 09/02/2025: Software Patents on MP3 and Another Scam Dressed Up as "Crypto"
Links for the day
Links 09/02/2025: Russian Energy Cut Off, LLM Pushers Show Signs of Desperation
Links for the day
Richard Stallman (RMS) Does Not Have Media Companies and Lobbyists on His Side, But His Message Spreads Regardless
The message of RMS is spreading in spite of all the smears
GNU/Linux Rises to All-Time High in Chile
sharp rise for GNU/Linux in Chile
Links 09/02/2025: Hottest January on Record, Panama Blackmailed
Links for the day
Why We Still Love Gemini Protocol
Gemini Protocol may seem like something "old" (it's actually very new) and something "nobody would use", but many people use it
Gemini Links 09/02/2025: "Died as a Mineral" and Game Interface for a Non-Game
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, February 08, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, February 08, 2025
Links 08/02/2025: UK Back Doors and Religious Fundamentalists in Positions of Higher Power
Links for the day
Today's IBM (Red Hat) Isn't the Company That Fought a Microsoft-Sponsored SCO in Court
IBM is nowadays in a state of rapid disintegration
When You Simply Rebrand Almost Everything as "Hey Hi" ("AI"), "Hey Hi Workloads", "Hey Hi Datacentres" and Whatnot
The "growth" has been a growing lie for years if not decades
Microsoft Windows Falls to 12% in Myanmar
Remember that Microsoft is virtually 0% in mobile
This is the Man Who's Attacking Linus Torvalds et al in "a Disease" (Social Control Media)
One thing that Richard M. Stallman and Torvalds can agree on is that Social Control Media should be avoided
Gemini Links 08/02/2025: "Thought Leaders" and Returns to Gemini Protocol
Links for the day
Links 08/02/2025: MElon Coup, Mass Layoffs at Facebook, and PlayStation Network Down
Links for the day
Unlike GAFAM, Free Software Serves You, It Does Not Serve Governments and MElons (Overlapping Forces)
Tired of oligarchy controlling your life through gadgets and "apps"?
On Wars Against Founders
We need to insist that founders remain
When It Comes to Social Control Media, Linus Torvalds is Channeling Techrights
GAFAM workers know exactly who to aim at
New EPO Paper: Promoting (Rewarding) People Who Grant Many Illegal European Patents to Make More Money (at Europeans' Expense) While Patent Courts in the EU Are Themselves Illegal
now the coup is sort of complete and even the "courts" are part of the corruption
Slopwatch: Carnival of LLM Slop and FUD Spewed by Bots, Pasted in by MaKenna Hensley and Day
Welcome to the Web in 2025. Articles about "Linux", "Security", and the Web (e.g. "Firefox") are fake.
Links 08/02/2025: News Corp Admits Traffic Declines, Wildlife Trafficking Tackled
Links for the day
Gemini Links 08/02/2025: Lamp and Notions
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, February 07, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, February 07, 2025