Bonum Certa Men Certa

Injustice at Every Level Would Simply Doom the Entire Patent System

Lack of respect for the fundamental laws and for constitutions (or the EPC) means the culprits cannot lecture the public on the need to obey the law

We break the law because we need to run an office to apply the law
And they hope to also enforce the law (with the UPC)



Summary: Repeated failure to restore the Rule of Law and enforce accountability/oversight in Europe's patent system renders the entire system moot; it is a case of adherence to basic constitutional pillars

UTTER LAWLESSNESS has long been a problem in EPOnia. Stakeholders cannot sue anyone but other stakeholders, staff cannot sue the management (no matter the circumstances or severity of grievances), and ILO-AT seems to be 'in bed' with EPO management. The EPO's judges are openly complaining that they lack the independence they require (as per the law) and examiners say they cannot do their job properly anymore.



Only patently dishonest people would claim that there's no problem at the EPO. The future isn't rosy, either. The EPO has issued the "news" "European Patent Office launches new Espacenet, improving access to world’s largest free collection of patent documents" (warning: epo.org link), soon to be boosted by Watchtroll (stenography from litigation fanatics and patent trolls).

"Only patently dishonest people would claim that there's no problem at the EPO."The quality of patents granted by the European Patent Office (EPO) under Campinos and Battistelli is rapidly decreasing, as will the value of these documents. All those software patents would likely perish in practice (e.g. in European courts, if challenged).

As someone noted earlier today in IP Kat comments:

Alice, Mayo and Myriad attempted for policy reasons to limit what was patentable in the computer-related and biotech field. Part of the reasoning was to make sure the 'building blocks of innovation' were not monopolised, i.e. stayed part of the commons. The IP community reacted by simply seeing the increased uncertainty, as you say, but there are much broader ramifications. Unfortunately economists have not jumped in and given us the numbers for how much the economy would benefit or lose. They only do the easy analyses, and don't tackle the really complex things. And if economists don't do this, then government has no way of seeing the real impact of what the Supreme Court was doing. So government sees no point in trying to protect the commons, because in trying to do so it will only see the criticism of the IP and R&D community, without any means to look at the gain.


The EPO has meanwhile moved in the opposite direction of the US. It's introducing all sorts of laughable patent 'families' and uses buzzwords like 'hey hi' (AI) to justify granting patents on mathematics. And who's gonna stop that? The EPO is virtually above the law and when it breaks laws nobody is held accountable. This means that lots of Invalid Patents (IPs) or bogus European Patents (EPs) are being given for those likely to just use them in bulk for blackmail or against small actors for 'protection money'. This is the very opposite of justice.

"...this is a repetition of the same mistakes which led to the granting of loads of fake patents -- patents that simply would not withstand challenge outside the EPO."Surely Max Walters (longtime writer for the patent microcosm) knows that quicker oppositions would mean sloppier ones, i.e. ones that are likely to leave fake patents in tact. But today he echoes a similar 'report' from WIPR 'sphere' (more patent maximalists in the EPO's pockets) by saying that lawyers "welcome opposition speed but want clearer BoA data". To quote: "In-house lawyers in the pharmaceutical industry say data showing that EPO opposition procedures are speeding up provides clarity but that more information should be published on how successful subsequent appeals are."

Speed is the wrong thing to measure. As we noted earlier this week, this is a repetition of the same mistakes which led to the granting of loads of fake patents -- patents that simply would not withstand challenge outside the EPO. The EPO now hopes to 'steal' all the courts -- a subject we'll tackle in the next post.

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