Bonum Certa Men Certa

A Very Corrupt EPO Uses COVID-19 to Pretend to be Benevolent (Politicians Running Technical Institutions as Recipe for Failure)

European Patent Office (EPO) President António Campinos and his predecessor Benoît Battistelli are being called "Mafia" by EPO insiders (workers)

When Exposing A Crime Is Treated As Committing A Crime, You Are Being Ruled By The Criminals Themselves.



Summary: In spite of political pandering, the blundering and plundering carry on; the "Mafia" which runs the Office these days has nothing to say in its defence, so instead it manipulates a public health crisis to sow further destruction -- even layoffs -- and Public Relations ensue

THE sad fact is, we're universally moving into a form of governance where those in positions of power can get away with just about anything. Even arrest-able crimes and offences. Many examples these days come from the White House, but let's leave 'pure politics' aside. The key point is, there's this trend and it is really, really troubling. It has gotten rather bad. There's a departure from the Rule of Law -- sometimes even constitutions -- or a neglect of enforcement of the law (or only selective enforcement, usually against the powerless; overpolicing entails). Readers will likely understand the sorts of things we allude to and some will agree. Those who disagree ("it has always been this bad!") might explain that increase in transparency -- whether it is true at all (we're also seeing a transition towards secrecy) -- means that nowadays the corruption and abuse become easier for the public to see.



Regardless of one's views on the general trend, at the EPO we're undoubtedly seeing a catastrophe. Some readers of ours call it "Mafia" (yes, as if the EPO nowadays is as abusive as the Mafia, or organised crimes at a broad scale). We put "Mafia" in quotes because this term isn't ours; though it reflects or highlights the general sentiment...

"There is one reason the EPO still exists," one EPO insider told us this week, "it is a cover-up for the mafia. Ask "riffle man" Battistelli and "powder nose" Campinos. Their goal is to make the final holdup on the remaining assets, billions belonging to the applicants and staff... with the benediction of the member states."

Many EPO insiders read this site. Perhaps they're fed up with all the puff pieces. Investigative journalism about the EPO is pretty much dead this year (it was also scarce last year). "Therefore," the EPO insider told us, "keep informing us because there are not many sources of reliable information left. Thank you!"

Our big advantage is that EPO insiders trust us and send us information, leaks, various bits of material. Our role is to help them communicate with the world as well as with colleagues; the union can barely do this anymore because it's being threatened and muzzled. Our heartfelt gratitude to SUEPO and the courageous people who still run it (in spite of the risks). These people have sacrificed so much for the EPO; the same cannot be said about EPO managers, who are merely robbing the institution while they can (it's all about personal gain).

No more photo ops for Campinos? Maybe. For a while...

The EPO's management published this fluff (warning: epo.org link) yesterday under the title "EPO President meets [sic] with Ibero-American IPOs" (no, they did not actually meet).

"The virtual meeting," it then said, "replaced the annual EPO-IMPI joint event usually held in Geneva in the fringes of the WIPO General Assemblies. This year 22 offices participated, including two EPO Member States; Spain and Portugal, and the DG-elect of WIPO, Mr Daren Tang."

Daren Tang from IPOS takes over another corruption-filled institution, whose corrupt chief had a bunch of puff pieces done for him lately (especially at Managing IP). Notice how the piece above totally lacks substance! Totally! It is amazingly shallow. Incredible. They're just exploiting COVID-19 for their patent propaganda, as usual (that's all these politicians know). Here's one part of it: "Speaking at the meeting on the two subjects of the COVID-19 Pandemic and on the benefits of cooperation, the EPO President said, ‘We need to find joint solutions to our common problems. Covid-19 is transforming all areas of society including IP, and our responses to it will define tomorrow's reality'."

Actually, as we noted before, the EPO's actions have in many ways made the crisis worse. But never mind facts.

"COVID COVID COVID COVID COVID SOMETHING SOMETHING COVID SOMETHING PATENTS IP INNOVATION COVID..."

Meeting over. Press "hangup" to 'depart' from the so-called 'meeting'...

A day earlier the EPO wrote a bunch of nonsense (warning: epo.org link) about the so-called 'study'. Ever wondered why media paid attention to it? Follow the money...

The EPO has long corrupted media and academia. And when they receive unfavourable coverage they resort to threats, blackmail, ousting the 'offending' writers and spiking 'bad' articles...

The above was "moderated by Roberta Romano-Götsch," who infamously defended corrupt Battistelli (the infamous letter circulated to give the illusion Battistelli had received support). This also mentions Christian Archambeau, who allegedly got his job because of rogue horse-trading by Battistelli. The whole panel is basically tainted and corrupt. What EPO insiders called "Mafia" wasn't just "up on display", it was up on stage (see photos). What utter lunacy. Heck, maybe Romano's family has actual connections to the real Mafia. The name "Battistelli" -- in Corsica at least -- does have Mafia association.

Regarding patent quality, the EPO is fast slipping. Don't believe us? Ask EPO staff. Just make sure they're asked discreetly (the EPO attacks staff representatives who dare or find the courage to bring that up; some people can lose their job over it). Earlier this week Florian Müller wrote this blog post which said "[a]nother Nokia patent case against Daimler practically stayed as patent-in-suit may be invalid"

Invalid European Patents again? At the center of massive, multi-continental litigation? "The patent-in-suit," Müller wrote, "is EP1671505 on a "redundancy strategy selection scheme." The original trial took place on February 6 (further to a first hearing held in 2019), but since then there have been various delays, and now that trial is going to continue one year and one day later..."

"Also," he noted below, "a Nokia v. Daimler trial (case no. 21 O 3891/19 over EP1388234 and the related German patent DE60240446C5 on a "hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) scheme with in-sequence deliver of packets") is still scheduled for next week."

Notice the language from the patents; certainly sounds like software patents.

As we said many times before, do not rush to blame examiners for granting those patents; the likely unlawful (incompatible with the EPC) guidelines compel them to do this. Otherwise they wind up unemployed in a foreign country. A very difficult situation when one wrongly assumed the job was permanent and took a massive loan from the bank...

As an EPO insider explained to us: "I have a more profound concern about the EPO which is not dead yet but in the intensive care. The unique motivation for examiners to stay is to "milk the cow" (sad but true) because the EPO still pays their mortgage. Many are elaborating a fallback plan outside the patent world."

Recent Techrights' Posts

Weeks After Microsoft Bankruptcy in Russia the Company Shuts Down in Pakistan, Too
Last month Windows' share in Pakistan fell to an all-time low
Crime and Corruption at Microsoft GitHub Cannot be Covered Up by SLAPPs in Another Continent
We'll write about this for a long time to come
Slop Videos Are Disappointing Garbage, Nothing New, Just Brute Force up on Display or a Pedestal of Slop
Slop videos aren't a new thing
 
Links 04/07/2025: Google Replaces the Web With Slop, "AI Might Kill Us All"
Links for the day
Gemini Links 04/07/2025: Mindfulness and F1
Links for the day
Rob Musial's June 2025 Additions of Malware in Proprietary Software
Via the GNU Web site this week
Links 04/07/2025: Microsoft's H-1B Visa Applications Show Another Crisis Unfolding, Many More Deep Cuts and Shutdowns Revealed, Complete Microsoft Exits
Links for the day
Gemini Links 04/07/2025: A Day To Remember and "Stop Killing Games"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, July 03, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, July 03, 2025
The War on Local Storage (People Hosting Their Files Locally and Privately)
There's nothing wrong with controlling one's computing
What Digital Independence Means
Independence in the digital realms means abandoning platforms like GitHub, not just rejecting proprietary software
NVidia is a Bubble
they temporarily see fortunes and wrongly assume perpetuity thereof
Fedora Does Not Care About Diversity and Inclusion, It's About Optics (Corporate Image)
any notion of inclusion is superficial and misleading
Don't Buy the Excuses for Microsoft's Mass Layoffs
Back in the 90s, Microsoft bought a lot of companies to get and stay ahead
Happy Independence Day to Our American Readers
Maybe tomorrow will be a good opportunity to explain to American people - in terms of concepts, not brands - which tools respect their independence
Slopwatch: Linux Journal, Linuxsecurity, and Google News Getting Even Worse (More Slopfarms Added Which Attack Linux With Bruce-Force SPAM)
Google News is part of the same problem
Links 03/07/2025: More Cuts and Cancellations at Microsoft Revealed
Links for the day
Gemini Links 03/07/2025: Favourite Child and Launching WikiGem
Links for the day
GNU/Linux is Replacing Microsoft Windows. But We Need to Eradicate Microsoft, It's a Hub of Crime.
I have been writing about Microsoft since the 1990s when I was in school
Mystery Surrounding the PCLinuxOS Sites and PCLinuxOS Magazine
Let's hope this isn't something major
People and Companies Do Learn Some Lessons From Their Mistakes (Stubborn Ones Don't)
Brett Wilson LLP is an example of one that would rather drown in mistakes
Links 03/07/2025: 'Hey Hi' Slop Ridiculed Some More and Microsoft's Layoffs Tally for 2025 Reaches About 29,000 in Just 6 Months (Almost 5,000 Per Month)
Links for the day
Microsoft Staff Harassing Women, Strangling Women, Telling Women to Kill Themselves and Worse? Not a Problem!
Two women have left Brett Wilson LLP
The Slopfarms Are Losing the Plot (and Google is Propping Up Rogue Sites)
Google is part of the attack on the Web, on information, and on technology
New BetaNews Realises There's No Potential or Future in Slopfarms, Prior Editor Wayne Williams is Back
They realise that slop (so-called "AI") cannot replace humans
Claims That Microsoft Looks for Staff That Works More and Gets Paid Less (or Can Only Code by Grabbing Other People's Code, Under the Guise of "AI")
People can form their own opinion
Richard Stallman Was Right About Reasons Not to Use Microsoft
last updated 2017
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, July 02, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, July 02, 2025
Gemini Links 03/07/2025: No to Cloudflare and Small Web July
Links for the day
Links 02/07/2025: Deep Microsoft Cuts, Macron Speaks to Putin
Links for the day
Confirmed: Microsoft Shutdowns Today, Not Only Mass Layoffs
"The Initiative is the only studio closure planned today, although some other teams have seen cuts of varying degrees."
Microsoft Windows Nosedives in Switzerland While GNU/Linux Leaps Above 6%
sooner or later they might have to make the move anyway
Anxiety at Microsoft: Many Workers (Maybe Over 10,000) Still Don't Know They're Being Laid Off Just Before US Independence Day
"Has anyone gotten the notification yet?"
Microsoft "Declined to Say How Many People Would be Laid Off," According to Associated Press
Some other prominent publications said they reached out for comment from Microsoft and received none
The X War is Over and the "Wayland People" Lost
People will gravitate towards what works for them
20 Years Since My Thesis
It's still online
GNU/Linux is Replacing Windows in Laptops/Desktops
The world will move on while Windows and Microsoft shrink
Now Comes the Expected Webspam, Framing Microsoft Layoffs as "Hey Hi" Success Story (False Marketing That's Piggybacking the Layoffs)
falsely marketed as "intelligence"
Hungary: Microsoft Windows Sinks to 17% "Market Share"
In many nations in Europe it seems like the era of Windows is coming to an end
Microsoft Media Operatives and Bill Epsteingate-Funded Sites Said Microsoft Lays Off 9,000, But Other Sites Say More (Including 2,300 in Redmond Alone)
We might never know the real number/s (Microsoft will keep the cards close to its chest) until there are leakers or unless there are whistleblowers with hard proof
Microsoft Layoffs in Spain, Portugal Record for GNU/Linux
in Portugal we see GNU/Linux at record levels
GNU/Linux Reaches All-Time High in the United States of America
Windows is trending down
Yes, Microsoft is Again Using Its Favourite Liars (Stenographers) to Seed Fake Layoff Numbers, Much Lower Than What's Really Happening
It is Jordan Novet again, just as we predicted
Will Microsoft Once Again Choose Its Favourite Liar to Spread Lies About Today's Layoffs, Quickly to be Replicated and Spread by Slopfarms?
What lies is Microsoft briefing its media moles to tell today?
"OSS Fetishism" Wins After Ferenc Zsolt Szabó Ousted (Microsoft Mole From Capgemini)
Many people said 2025 would be the "year of Linux on the desktop"
There is Nothing That LLMs Can Offer Honest People
LLMs are a passing fad; they're expensive and offer poor "value" for energy; they usually offer no value at all unless you are a cheater, spammer, and liar
What statCounter Shows Today Helps Explain Microsoft's Helplessness, Mass Layoffs
Since many US journalists are already away on holiday almost nobody will dare ask the difficult questions or give a voice to whistleblowers
Microsoft Gets the Chop in South America
The notion of digital sovereignty gained a lot of popularity
Europe Has an 'Exit'
Let's see what happens the rest of this year
El Presidente Talks, Canada Walks (Away From Windows)
GNU/Linux rising
Cities in France and Germany Move to GNU/Linux and statCounter Detects Big Differences
Will governments lead by example?
Microsoft Lost Its Foothold in Africa
How many of these are "old" Windows machines converted to GNU/Linux? Probably a lot.
Led by Europe, GNU/Linux Makes Big Gains This Month
statCounter started showing new/fresh stats
Links 02/07/2025: Massive Microsoft Layoffs About to Commence, "Tesla's Robotaxi Program Is Failing"
Links for the day
Why the Microsoft People Who Started SLAPPs Against Techrights Could Very Well be Sent Back to Prison
White-collar crime is also a crime
The Company Run by Former (and Last Proper) Red Hat CEO, Promoting Microsoft Mono, Faces Shock as Senior Partner Jailed for 33 Sexual Offenses Including Pedophilia
"As reported by The Oxford Mail in April 2025, the offenses include rape, sexual assault, engaging in non-penetrative activity with a child, and more."
Microsoft Lost 29% of Windows Users, Based on Microsoft, Now Come Massive Layoffs
Microsoft collapse is today
Slopwatch: Google Serves to People Linux Slop and Linux FUD (Made by Bots)
"Slopwatch" finds it difficult to ignore Google's role in encouraging LLM slop
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, July 01, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, July 01, 2025
"Wayland People" Behave Like the Googles and Microsofts of This World
Published yesterday by Igor Ljubuncic
Gemini Links 02/07/2025: Arch Linux and Fulfillment in Gemini
Links for the day