Bonum Certa Men Certa

CIPA and EPO, Two UPC Boosters, Get Together to Promote Software Patents in Spite of the EPC

Shredding the rule of law

A paper trail



Summary: The private sector of patent litigation paints itself as the victim (never mind the many victims of their often-frivolous lawsuits) while lobbying for irrational patents that serve nobody in science and technology; this is troublesome for a plethora of important factors and reasons

THE MANAGEMENT of the EPO has long attempted to paint itself as the victim (of "defamation" or a "smear campaign" or whatever). These are patently absurd inversions of narratives because it's the EPO that defames employees (sometimes calling them "Nazis") and smearing the staff union, SUEPO. It's all about perception and EPO managers spent an extraordinary amount of money (EPO budget of course!) on PR agencies, whose job was to lie to the public.



It wasn't too long ago that Josh from Patent Progress refuted some nonsensical chart much like the EPO's supposed 'results', where companies get ranked only by their patents (enumerated, aggregated).

"It's all about perception and EPO managers spent an extraordinary amount of money (EPO budget of course!) on PR agencies, whose job was to lie to the public.""The number of patents received by a company has little to do with its creativity," Josh said, "and yet we get this kind of nonsense all the time."

How many patent lawyers/attorneys seriously believe that patents and inventions are the same thing? This is not just pure nonsense but it is paid-for propaganda; there's an agenda here and it's often delivered/amplified by corporate media...

The "Cult of Patents" people (as we often refer to the likes who promote such charts) are writing entire articles about a Samsung patent as if a patent is a product [1, 2]. It's not. And from war on (particular) drugs we've apparently moved to patenting them, based on this new press release. Incredible. Truly incredible. It's all because of money; it's all about commercial interests, not safety or ethics or health...

"How many patent lawyers/attorneys seriously believe that patents and inventions are the same thing?"Are these drugs any good for treating depression? Well, hopefully...

According to CIPA, the real victims aren't those who get sued by patent holders, usually baselessly. The real victims are those who are responsible for these lawsuits. That's a lot like those articles about "bored" and "depressed" drone operators, who basically slaughter a lot of people using a joystick halfway across the world. Many articles have been composed for over half a decade about the "stress" and "fatigue" of these operators. We recently started seeing similar articles about NSA analysts, as if those who illegally and unconstitutionally infringe the privacy of millions are actually the victims worthy of public sympathy. Isn't that grotesque?

According to CIPA and the likes of it (see Ben Wodecki on Twitter), we need to be sorry for patent attorneys. Remember that CIPA is their front group in the UK. It's a highly nefarious front group that liaised with Battistelli some months ago. It's also the foremost lobbyist for UPC in the UK.

"According to CIPA, the real victims aren't those who get sued by patent holders, usually baselessly. The real victims are those who are responsible for these lawsuits."Are attorneys unhappy at their job? Then they need to change occupations. As patent maximalism may be coming to an end (at least in the US) the market will become more competitive and over-congested. It will be harder to attract 'business'; we already see some mergers and acquisitions that are symptoms of it.

"You just need to read 2 or 3 patent claims," Benjamin Henrion wrote, "and your brain start to hurt. No wonder if you have to write those claims the whole day [go] #mental..."

We remind readers that CIPA representatives basically 'infiltrated' IP Kat, whereupon EPO coverage virtually ground to a half. They're UPC boosters who seem to have no qualm about doing photo ops with Battistelli and software patents in Europe is an agenda they totally and wholeheartedly support. CIPA can be blamed for erostion of patent quality at the EPO. EPO staff should be upset at CIPA; they're not on the same side, they're almost opposites.

Mind what the EPO wrote in Twitter some hours ago: "We're holding a free-of-charge #ICT seminar in London on 28 Sep in co-operation with @TheCIPA. For more details, and to sign up, click here: http://bit.ly/ICTseminar18 pic.twitter.com/5ksdupirtC"

"EPO staff should be upset at CIPA; they're not on the same side, they're almost opposites."ICT is one of those buzzwords (or terms) they use for software patents. CIPA and EPO are again liaising in order to 'conspire' for software patents. Well, see the description in the cited page (warning: epo.org link): "The event will focus on patentability issues and the major aspects of filing and prosecuting ICT-related patent applications at the EPO. Three break-out workshops will be offered related to the drafting of European applications in the respective areas of Business Methods, examination of cloud computing at the EPO: claims for the Cloud as well as Human Computer Interaction (HCI) and Graphic User Interface (GUI). An EPO expert and a European patent attorney will chair each workshop which will cover information both on the legal framework and on the claim drafting aspects."

This is CIPA's agenda. Suffice to say, terms like "cloud" are just masks for software patents.

Then they come out with nonsense like this sob story, trying to garner some sympathy:

An IP Inclusive and Chartered Institute of Patent Attorneys (CIPA) survey showed that 33 percent of patent professionals are uncomfortable, unhappy or very unhappy, with disturbing numbers confessing to thoughts of self-harm or suicide.

The ‘Report of IP Inclusive & CIPA survey for Mental Health Awareness Week 2018’ found that almost 70 percent of respondents admitted to having their mental health affected at work by high stress levels.

The report showed that 66.9 percent of the 180 respondents admitted to having been adversely affected at work by high stress levels, with over half suffering from anxiety.


CIPA (patent maximalists) should encourage them to seek employment with industries that create things, not doing patents and litigation. The latter isn't as fulfilling.

"We caution EPO staff not to view CIPA is an ally with shared concerns. CIPA's only concern seems to be that there aren't "enough" patents; it wants a lot more!"The above has since then been mentioned by circles close to EPO too (and retweeted by anonymous EPO staff). Maybe they feel like they can relate, but actually the CIPA types are very much 'enemies' of examiners; they propped up Battistelli, they reduce patent quality, and they lie to the public about UPC. And of course, like almost every day, the EPO has just promoted software patents again, dubbing them "AI" for hype/buzz. This is the sort of thing CIPA wants the EPO to do and actively participates in.

We caution EPO staff not to view CIPA is an ally with shared concerns. CIPA's only concern seems to be that there aren't "enough" patents; it wants a lot more! It's what makes examiners' lives a lot more miserable and emboldens Team Battistelli.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Our Three Lawsuits Against Microsofters Are About to Become a Lot More Relevant to GNU/Linux
The Master will easily understand why Garrett has been attacking me since 2012
They Don't Tell Us that 'Digitalisation' (Now Sold as "Hey Hi") Just Means Customers Become Unpaid Staff and Are Made Accountable
People are being conditioned to associate technology with something undesirable, at times even unbearable
 
New and Old
On Ageism in Tech
Slop Is Not Intelligence and It Does Not Enhance Productivity
Like voice dictation, which cannot tell the difference between "sheet" and "shit"
EPO Crimes Are Spreading to the British Court System
Society is now paying the price for failing to tackle crimes at the EPO
It's Time to Dump SharePoint and Here's What to Use Instead
Nextcloud, ownCloud, Bookstack, MediaWiki, and MediaGoblin
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, July 22, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, July 22, 2025
Brett Wilson LLP Has Gone Silent
Sometimes silence says more than nothing at all
Slopwatch: LinuxSecurity, Planet Ubuntu, and LinuxTechLab
some slopfarms show no remorse and they don't value their reputation at all
Links 23/07/2025: Book Bans, Storms, and Kangaroo Court for Patents Commits More Unlawful Acts of Overreach
Links for the day
Gemini Links 22/07/2025: Thinkpad and Pinephone
Links for the day
Links 22/07/2025: "Blog Restart" and Microsoft Clobbered by “ToolShell"
Links for the day
Global Warming and Global GAFAM Energy-Wasting
Burn more money (borrowed, loans), then hope the waste will somehow translate into profit?
No Compliance With the European Patent Convention (EPC) at the European Patent Office (EPO)
It's about preventing competition against this autocracy
Blue-Collar Trolls vs White-Collar Trolls
Examples of white-collar trolls
Apple Vision Pro Failed So Badly That Its Sales Are About 2,000 Times Smaller Than iPhone Sales
What's left for Apple to offer other than hype?
To Millions of People "Year of the Linux Desktop" Was Some Time in the 1990s (Bootable GNU/Linux as a Complete Operating System is Over 33 in Age)
In some sense, "year of the Linux desktop" was 33 years ago
Make No Assumptions (or Demands) About the Screen Resolution Used by Other People
There are usability aspects, aside from accessibility aspects
Why Wayland (and XWayland) Won't Solve the Key Problem It Proclaims to be Tackling (the Same Is True for Rust)
The problem isn't Wayland per se but the false promises and efforts to force everybody to move to it whilst insulting or demonising everyone who won't play along
Diplomatic Immunity Should Not Exist for Anybody
The EPO in its current form gradually 'normalises' the end of European democracy
Brett Wilson LLP Stopped Sending Me Papers When I Showed It had Sent Me Over 5 Kilograms of Legal Papers
A week ago we lodged our third lawsuit
Microsoft Mass Layoffs and Shutdowns Became the New Normal at Microsoft
Microsoft mass layoffs became a topic of everyday media coverage since May
Amazon Web Services (AWS) Has Layoffs and Microsoft Gaming/Entertainment Division Has an Uncertain Future
it's good to see all those horrible things crashing and burning
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, July 21, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, July 21, 2025
FSF "Raised Almost $139,000 During This Summer Campaign"
"Thank you for making a stand against dystopia!"
Gemini Links 22/07/2025: VPS Exploited and Fear of View
Links for the day
LLM Bots vs Techrights
Slows things down a bit
New Publication Sheds Lights on Abuse of Workers at the European Patent Office (EPO)
Put in simple terms, they're killing the Office, harming remaining staff, try to hire rubber-stampers
Links 21/07/2025: Hardware, Health, and Imperialism
Links for the day
Gemini Links 21/07/2025: "When Buying Isn't Owning" and "CMS Special Edition"
Links for the day
Links 21/07/2025: Indie Web and Toxic Politics
Links for the day
[Meme] Microsoft Lawyers Throwing Stones in Glass Houses
threatened me with bankruptcy
Google "AI Overview" is Not AI and Not Overview
do not be misled; what Google does isn't smart, it's just ripping off the sites it already crawled for as long as 27 years
Making the Case to Dump Microsoft and GAFAM for National and Digital Sovereignty
"Sovereignty is difficult"
The Tactics of the Opposition (Microsoft Lunduke): Associate With K00ks, Throw in Vaccines to Muddy the Water
Who stands to gain from this?
Europe's Second-Largest Institution (EPO) and Largest Patent Monopoly Office Needs More Transparency, Not Less Transparency
In the EPO, what good are elections when one candidate literally bribes all the voters?
How Not to Report News About Microsoft
This pattern of misreporting is so widespread that it's hard to believe it's not intentional
Computer Science is Under Attack, They Want Everyone to be a Consumer
If people can no longer acquire Computer Science education and real Computer Science experience, they will not know how to control their own digital destiny or emancipate the very same universities that now control the syllabus and instead of teaching Computer Science encourage the outsourcing of systems
The Best Tools Are the Simplest Tools
There's a hidden message here about the merits of sticking with X
Ofcom Online Safety Group Speaks of Protecting Women Online, Will Brett Wilson LLP Ever Listen?
They've essentially became like the Taliban's "burka police"
Social Control Media Relies on Advertisers, So It'll Always Be Hostile Towards Free Software
Sales, sales, sales
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, July 20, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, July 20, 2025
Fragmentation of Data
Life is too short to "hoard" data
In Defence of "Spinning Rust"
Just because something is "old" (or older) doesn't mean it ought to become extinct
Using Free Software to Prepare Legal Documents
LibreOffice is openly complaining about OOXML as an obstacle
Tech and Technology Are Not the Same Anymore
"Are you into tech, Sir?"
Our Articles About SLAPPs Receive Recognition and Interest
This week we shall continue writing about the 3 lawsuits we filed