Bonum Certa Men Certa

EPO: A Lawless Institution That Makes Its Staff Look Bad

Courts all around the world -- bar China -- are rejecting abstract patents on mathematics; why are examiners being punished for doing the same?

I came to fix the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) after a bunch of crooked judges decided to approve patents on mathematics
Let's hope she becomes a Justice at the highest American court one day



Summary: The EPO is promoting patents on mathematics and associates with -- sometimes promotes -- people who openly call for patents on mathematics

ONE thing that the EPO and USPTO have in common is their overzealous love of software patents, no matter if courts 'loathe' these (it's not about emotion or about hate; that's just simply the law -- something that neither António Campinos nor Benoît Battistelli would like to obey).



"It's nice to be able to understand history and know a lot of languages (polyglots can find more prior art), but without basic understanding of the underlying concepts patents will be wrongly granted, based on complete misunderstandings if not guesswork."These 'gentle' dictators don't seem to understand that patent systems should be measured in terms like justice or science, not money. There will still be science without money, especially money that's extracted by aggression (legal action/litigation). We'd like to take a moment to cordially remind examiners that they're scientists and if they work for a patent office they must always remember that their employer is supposed to advance science; it's not about enriching some law firms. If it is, it might be time to reconsider one's job; a career in a patent office is supposed to be about science. This is why patent offices have traditionally recruited highly-educated people with degrees in science and engineering, not people with a degree in history or some language/s. It's nice to be able to understand history and know a lot of languages (polyglots can find more prior art), but without basic understanding of the underlying concepts patents will be wrongly granted, based on complete misunderstandings if not guesswork. SUEPO and staff representatives have already warned that under Campinos many EPO examiners are being assigned to deal with applications in domains well outside their 'ballpark'. It's a recipe for disaster unless the sole goal is granting as many patents as possible, including ones that ought not be granted (rejected outright!). In the USPTO, for example, the so-called 'economist' recently bragged about compelling examiners to ignore or improperly apply 35 U.S.C. €§ 101. What a nerve these people have, forcing workers with scientific integrity to grant unlawful patents which courts would most likely veto. The general message is, "break the law to keep your job!"

"Deep inside, however, these people are motivated to keep their job and pay the mortgage."The EPO is no enemy of ours. The EPO's management, however, clearly dislikes us. After almost 2 years at the Office Campinos still blocks Techrights on 'behalf' of thousands of employees; contrariwise, whoever runs the EPO's Twitter account not only refuses to block me! They follow me! They read my tweets. One might wonder if these people too haven't really swallowed the lies of the EPO's management. Deep inside, however, these people are motivated to keep their job and pay the mortgage.

EPO follows
Maybe deep inside the people who field this account (lying for a salary) know we're actually on their side



In any event, yesterday the EPO tweeted some more nonsense that's covert promotion of software patents.

To quote:



Digital communication & computer technology are enabling the #4IR by providing the tools for turning technical applications into smart devices. We've put together some interesting patenting trends in these fields: https://bit.ly/DigitalisationIndex … pic.twitter.com/MKPriH16nM


It isn't too hard to decipher this.

Tossing in fictional buzzwords ("4IR") as hashtags to promote illegal patents that the Office illegally grants to fake "Annual Results"? And then gamble with the money, defrauding Europe and EPO workers (including those who field this Twitter account)?

"Insiders compare the management to "Mafia" while bemoaning a culture of overt corruption, including nepotism, not to mention intimidation against truth-tellers and law-abiding staff."We desperately need the old EPO back; EPO workers need that too. Insiders compare the management to "Mafia" while bemoaning a culture of overt corruption, including nepotism, not to mention intimidation against truth-tellers and law-abiding staff.

The EPO has also just tweeted this thing about supposed learning. Notice the link. The very top entry in this page is shameless promotion of illicit patents on algorithms (under the guise of "Games" or "Videogames").

Last week the EPO's Twitter account tweeted promotion of a patent radical from the US, who founded a site called "IP Watchdog" (we don't call it that because it's a misnomer). Just look at the deluded nonsense that site wrote yesterday (and yesterday alone). Over at Watchtroll Paul Michel has just called himself "Judge Paul Michel" even though he's no longer a judge; he's pushing/lobbying the US Supreme Court (SCOTUS) to allow software patents ("Flaws in the Supreme Court’s €§101 Precedent and Available Ways to Correct Them"). He used to be a judge at the Federal Circuit and now that he's "retired" (lobbyist) he constantly promotes particular legislation, ruining the perception that judges are objective and uninvolved in politics. Maybe Judge Sharon Prost (actually a judge, still) should tell him to keep his big mouth shut; he makes her court look bad. This is a form of corruption and one might wonder if Michel pockets money 'on the side' for this sort of lobbying. His successor Rader was caught in a corruption scandal and was forced to resign. Later on SCOTUS overturned just about every single decision handed down by Rader.

"Later on SCOTUS overturned just about every single decision handed down by Rader."Now look on at yesterday's output from Watchtroll. It's truly insane. It's deluded. "The Long Reach of the Mathematics Patentability Exception is Overbroad and Absurd" is the headline; Jose Nunez now openly promotes patents on mathematics. Yes, let's have monopolies over laws of nature! The summary says: "The mathematics exception for subject matter eligibility is overbroad because it was improperly justified under the premise that mathematics is like a law of nature. This is absurd because mathematics is everywhere, and excepting mathematics means excepting virtually everything."

Oh. My. God!

"What have we sunk to? And why does today's EPO associate with such madness?"These people acknowledge that things like algorithms are in fact mathematics and now they openly and shamelessly pushing for patent monopolies on maths!!!

"Oh... sorry my dear, you cannot use that equation, it is patented!"

What have we sunk to? And why does today's EPO associate with such madness?

Recent Techrights' Posts

Social Control Media Does Not Improve Reach, It Wastes a Lot of Time
many people still think that no presence in Social Control Media necessarily means invisibility
Links 02/06/2026: New York Times Debunks "Hey Hi (AI) Layoffs" (Excuse, False Narrative), Sheinbaum Publicly Bemoans US Meddling
Links for the day
What Efforts to Cancel Richard Stallman Ought to Teach Us About the Media, Including Very Large British Publishers
Richard Stallman is like a modern-age Alfred Dreyfus
 
Web Censorship Benefits the Corrupt and the Criminal
More so when corrupt politicians are in charge
Have a "Lifetime" Without Microsoft
The online rage over this is still ongoing
Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine Undoing Censorship of Corporate Wrongdoing
That won't go away anymore
"For Entertainment Purposes Only" But Everyone Must Adopt It for Work and Governance, Say Anti-Scientific Technocrats
"The present mentality around "AI" is like driving to the gym to use a treadmill - it's walking for people who hate fresh air and beautiful changing scenery."
Gemini Links 03/06/2026: Ian Murdock's Ex-wife Footprint in Debian and Alhena 5.6.1 Released
Links for the day
Irish Company statCounter Recognises It Overestimated Microsoft Windows' Market Share in Ireland
it seems like the Irish people are gradually moving away from Windows
Corporate Media Participates in the Lie That Mass Layoffs at GitLab and Loss of Geographic Footprint in More Than a Third of Countries is "AI" and Thus "Success Story"
There's no way to spin this as positive news
Slop Prompting is Not a Coding Skill and Slop Deserves Shunning
Red Hat is hypocritically shunning the very same thing it keeps promoting
IBM colleagues "handed out a PIP and then right after the end date they are gone"
Some go into early 'retirement' to save face
SLAPP Censorship - Part 96 Out of 200: When You Receive Death Threats From Anonymous Sockpuppets/Burner Accounts Connected to People Who Strangle Women and Tell Women to Kill Themselves
Women are not objects and my wife ought not be mentioned in "threats to kill" (how cops have described this)
European Patent Office (EPO) Series: A Tale of Two Antónios - Introducing the Other António
António Costa
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, June 02, 2026
IRC logs for Tuesday, June 02, 2026
Advertisements as Articles in The Register MS
Trust in media
Despite Mass Layoffs and Culls Dubbed "Buyouts" Google's Debt Doubled in a Year and It's Desperate for Money (to Pay Salaries and Bills)
Google and GAFAM in general have mass layoffs because they have no clear route towards profitability
Gemini Links 02/06/2026: Arch Linux WriterDeck and Papyrix Reader
Links for the day
Bloggers Still Have Considerable Impact on This Planet
Nowadays, in academia almost anywhere in the world, there's growing expectation that lecturers will spend not much of the time doing research or even teaching
The Firing Line Against Techrights
Tomorrow we'll tell a story about campaigns to intimidate us with death threats
The Cyber Show on the Fight Against Technofascism
It's very long (all combined), but nevertheless refreshing
After Threats to Greenland Northern Europe Seems to be Moving Away From Microsoft Windows Even Faster
The facts on the ground are, more people/businesses/institutions "get the message"
Claim of 500+ IBM Red Hat Layoffs With Termination Next Month
IBM is doing great... at hiding internal affairs
Slop Did Not Rewire Democracy, It's a Giant Flop
we already see slop giants accepting they'll never make money
The Register MS Embeds in Articles "SPONSORED LINKS" That Link to "AI" Ponzi Scheme/Scam
The circular financing giants are allocating budget for the spam, as do the banks (lenders)
Many Countries Divest From Microsoft
new numbers at statCounter today
European Patent Office (EPO) Series: A Tale of Two Antónios - On the Campaign Trail in Brussels
Part 1
SEO is an Acronym That Stands for Slop Engine Orientation
The Web changed a lot when Web directories, portals, and then social control media gained popularity
IRC Network OFTC is Shedding Off Servers
Down to 17
Julian Assange's Counsel Jennifer Robinson Has Just Won an Award
Jennifer Robinson is relatively young
Schweizerische Bundesbahnen (Swiss Federal Railways) and Richard Stallman
It seems like RMS is receiving endorsement or at least belated recognition from very high-profile institutions
Almost 30 Years After Rob Malda Made Slashdot It Still Inspires New Implementations
Maybe the issue isn't Slash per se, just the complexity of it (which SoylentNews complained about in the past)
Links 02/06/2026: "The Infosec Phrasebook", 'Perfect Randomness' and "Leaving the Tech World Professionally"
Links for the day
Faking Demand for Slop: Google's Search Prompt Becomes Slop Prompt (Bait, Switch, Fake Usage)
If there is no consent, then it's unsustainable
When You Give People (or Companies) Money to Buy Your Own Products and Then Call It "Revenue"
A lot of modern "economics" don't benefit ordinary people (all they get is high inflation rates); they're devaluing money by faking economic activity
IBM is Self-Detonating, the Cheeto-Infused Rally is Another Con by Don
pump and dump
"Quantum" as the "Next Big" Bubble
disappointing and delivering nothing
Links 02/06/2026: "$1.5 Trillion Defense Budget Benefits Billionaire Cheeto Mussolini Supporters", US "Plans to Criminalize Sleeping Outside"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 02/06/2026: Organising Oneself and Killing Off Distracting "Notifications"
Links for the day
SLAPP Censorship - Part 95 Out of 200: The Growing Risk of Tolerating Men Who Abuse and Physically Assault Women
FOSS should not be a "safe harbour" or "hideout" for criminals
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, June 01, 2026
IRC logs for Monday, June 01, 2026
Rust is a Disaster for Both GNU and Linux, But 'Linux' Foundation (GKH) Keeps Promoting It Despite the Problems
And non-GPL licences
IBM's CEO and his "pump and dump scheme" ("Arvind's lies about quantum")
Don't be misled by Wall Street
Gemini Links 01/06/2026: Xylophone Essay, Ham Radio, and Slop Contaminating USENET/Newsgroups
Links for the day
How to Tackle Corruption Effectively and Gradually
In my personal, humble experience
European Patent Office (EPO) Series: A Tale of Two Antónios
"Campaign for the Re-Appointment of the President"
Links 01/06/2026: Patent Applicant Disclosures Drop After the January 2025 IDS Surcharge, "China Exports Surveillance"
Links for the day
Links 01/06/2026: Irreversible GAFAM Bans and "The Pirate Bay Remains Resilient"
Links for the day
Running and Writing Sites for People, Not Bots (Including Search Engines)
Had those sites spent more time focusing on RSS feeds (not social control media "games") and less on SEO (trying to game search engines), they wouldn't be sobbing now
SBB, the Swiss Railroads, Want to Hear Richard Stallman
Can Dr. Stallman persuade key decision makers to adopt not only "Linux" but also Software Freedom (not the same thing), as he did in South American before? Or like he did in Kerala?
Resumes and Vanity Pages
Wikipedia is fast becoming a glorified marketing company
Trusting Microsoft is Foolish
Mr. Rossmann says they "gaslight customers" in their Web site, but it goes a lot further than this
Techrights in a Nutshell, in Very Generic Terms
"for dummies"
SLAPP Censorship - Part 94 Out of 200: SLAPP by Garrett's Litigation Buddy Started 20 Months Ago, He Has Not Even Put in His Defence Yet!
This is what happens when one deals with incels and misogynists who promote slop and Microsoft
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, May 31, 2026
IRC logs for Sunday, May 31, 2026
Gemini Links 01/06/2026: Buckingham Palace Garden Party, TUI Annoyances, Lateral Thinking with Withered Technology
Links for the day