Bonum Certa Men Certa

‘Building the Evidence Base on the Performance of the UK Patent System’ Put in Perspective and Threats From Patent Maximalists

Building the Evidence Base on the Performance of the UK Patent System

Summary: Analysis (however short) of the new report from UK-IPO and lobbying by law firms from the US to expand patent scope not only in the US but also Europe

TECHRIGHTS is not a job to me. It's an expensive hobby (I run it at my own expense). I'm a software person. I'm thankful for the fact that here in the UK software patents aren't much of an issue; it's the UPC that threatens to bring them here, hence the opposition from British software companies.

IP Kat's latest "Friday Fantasies" by Hayleigh Bosher (usually a weekly roundup) spoke about the UK-IPO's report [PDF] and unlike Bristows and Managing IP (UPC boosters), the Kats don't spin it as a UPC thing. Unlike the Unitary Patent (UPC) zealots, they don't pretend there's something in it about the UPC. Here is the relevant bit:

UK patent system: Building the evidence base, a new UK IPO Report

The UK IPO has produced a report titled ‘Building the Evidence Base on the Performance of the UK Patent System.’ The research considers the UK patent system through a range of sources including stakeholder interviews, analysis of data, and existing academic literature, looking at how companies patent in the UK, who patents in the UK, and how the UK system compares to other countries.

The report suggests that overall the operation of the UK patent system is positive. The number of patents covering the UK is high; however, UK firms appear underrepresented in patent applications, with a lower proportion of domestic applicants than other countries.



Notice the comment from Barbara Cookson. "The UK IPO name and shame procedure is best for foreign parties with no real business or assets in the UK," she said. Here is her full message:

A costs order from the IPO against an English entity can most conveniently be enforced through IPEC using the district judges that man the small claims track. A statutory demand is a bit OTT unless there is reason to believe the company is insolvent and would be better struck off. If you prefer a simple life at the desk you could just do a money claim online for the debt but the court fees are higher and if the defendant does not pay you are still back with enforcement. The Money Claim Online works with a UK company that is solvent and really does not want any judgements against it and simply has not paid because its peeved by the decision. The UK IPO name and shame procedure is best for foreign parties with no real business or assets in the UK to enforce against.


In the case of software, naming and shaming isn't even necessary. Copyright does the job. Plagiarism of code is a serious abuse and in the case of Free/libre software there's the aspect of copyleft licence compliance.

Fenwick & West LLP, propagandists for software patents (see for example this or that), are doing a think tank/lobbying event with EPO in it. A few days ago this came up:

As traditional biomedical research and data science have converged, we have seen an influx of patent application filings in this newly developing space. The prepar​ation and prosecution of these cross-disciplinary patent applications have posed unique challenges and there remains a great deal of uncertainty and confusion around certain patentability challenges both in the United States and the European Union. In this highly informative program, our panel of examiners from the US Patent Office and the European Patent Office will do a deep dive into the roadblocks that precision medicine and bioinformatics patent applications can face. We will also cover the main differences between the EPO and the USPTO and address how to best navigate them in the current legal environment.​


This event is 19 days away. What they're basically pushing for is expansion of patent scope or workarounds that bypass the restrictions/boundaries. Fenwick & West is part of the patent 'industry', so all it wants is lots of patents and litigation that accompanies these. That's pretty much what the UPC too is all about.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Microsoft-Sponsored Xenophobia and Nationalism
IBM is very similar in this regard
Tentative Summary of Things to Publish in Project 2030
I'll still be in my forties by then
 
Links 21/09/2025: "Hey Hi" (Hype) Under Fire, Fakes Identified; Tesla Burns Family
Links for the day
Google's Software is Malware and Malware in Mobile Devices
Originally posted by Rob Musial
Links 20/09/2025: Hegemony Coming to a Close, Luigi Mangione Ruled Not Terrorist
Links for the day
Gemini Links 21/09/2025: "Charlie Kirk Was a Hateful Piece of Shit" and Slop Code Attempted by Microsofter
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, September 20, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, September 20, 2025
Gemini Links 20/09/2025: Snowy Photos and utism is a Spectrum
Links for the day
Vintage is Sometimes Better
Why can't we get back to "simple" if (or where) "simple" means better?
Climate Breakdown Means We'll be Publishing More, Not Less
Press freedom will be a common, recurring theme
Our 5-Year Geminispace Anniversary is Coming Up
I still remember when Gemini Protocol was quite new
It's Right to Point Out Violence From the Right
Violence is a recurring theme
Web Browsers That "Do Hey Hi" (AI)
State-of-the-art plagiarism or "autocomplete on steroids" (not coined by us, nevertheless a nice description) don't have much/any prospect
Links 20/09/2025: Hardware Projects in View, Some Independent Publishers About Russia Prosper After Cheeto Cuts Funding
Links for the day
Gemini Links 20/09/2025: Options and TV Time Machine
Links for the day
Links 20/09/2025: Retrocomputer, Antique Phone Experience, and More
Links for the day
Links 20/09/2025: Internet Shutdowns, Media Censorship, and Climate Worries
Links for the day
About 700 New Gemini Capsules in 13 Months (or 54 Per Month)
4.8K would represent a 20% increase
Rust People: Drain the Swap, You're Holding It Wrong
Does Rust make sense?
Techrights the Name Turns 15
About 6 weeks from now we turn 19
Microsoft is Running Out of Time and Floating Fake Figures, Fake Projects, Fake Narratives, Fake Excuses
Also, a lot of Microsoft's "revenue" claims are circular financing (i.e. Microsoft buying from itself, which means Ponzi-like fraud)
Slopwatch: LinuxSecurity, linuxconfig.org, and Plagiarised Phoronix
Many articles out there are nowadays fake
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Friday, September 19, 2025
IRC logs for Friday, September 19, 2025
Gemini Links 20/09/2025: Navigating the Pressures of Modern Life and SpellBinding Accidentally Wrote Another Gemini Server
Links for the day
Links 19/09/2025: Press Freedom Dying in US, Anti-Austerity Strikes in France, and Alan Rusbridger to Leave 'Prospect'
Links for the day
European Patent Office Illegally Gutting and Outsourcing Its Functions, Acting Like an Above-the-Law Commercial Business (It Won't Stop at Formalities Officers (FOs) and Classification Slop at the EPO)
breaking/violating laws and conventions
Offloading to the Sister Site
In the interest of not overwhelming readers
Links 19/09/2025: Coffee Club and "SpellBinding is Now Absurdly Fast"
Links for the day
Links 19/09/2025: Lobbyist of American GAFAM Becomes Data Protection Commissioner in Europe
Links for the day
Links 19/09/2025: Media Freedom Ceases to Exist in US, "Consider Dropping Twitter/X"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 19/09/2025: Thinking and Insect Bites
Links for the day
Microsoft E.E.E.: Git Will Now (or Very Soon) Fully Depend on Rust, Which is Controlled by Microsoft
Microsoft now makes Git dependent on Rust, or making Git dependent on GitHub, which is proprietary
The Right to Punch People (Apparently)
At Brett Wilson, Brett's job title is "Head of Crime" and Wilson normalises calls for violence
Slop or Fake Articles Have Turned Linux Journal From a Pioneering/Trailblazing "Linux" Magazine Into a Nuisance
some sites with former reputation - good reputation - turn into cesspools
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, September 18, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, September 18, 2025