Bonum Certa Men Certa

“ViCo” is Nothing New (Not Even the Acronym), Done on 9/11 Last Year, Been Possible as Long as the EPO Has Existed

More on "ViCo":



Videoconferencing did not exist until the EPO granted patents on it?Summary: Contrary to what many people are led to believe, the EPO isn't embracing innovation, it's just embracing COVID-19 and leveraging lock-downs (de facto house arrest to some) to impose an illegal practice on EPO staff and EPO stakeholders

THE EPO's management likes to pretend that video conferences are something new and innovative. But as "Patent robot" pointed out on November 29th at 12:11 PM in Kluwer Patent Blog comments, "videoconferencing was already available in 1973" (when Benoît Battistelli was a really young man and António Campinos just a little kid).



"Privacy at the EPO is a total farce."Looking at documents from last year, we find that even the overly hyped buzzword, “ViCo”, was used back then. Central Staff Committee representatives wrote to staff as follows (the yellow highlights are added by us):



Status on WG: StaffRep resources



No progress – no commitments


Dear colleagues,

The Communiqué of the President on Social Dialogue just published on the Intranet suggests that  the discussions in the Working Group on Staff Representation Resources (WGSR) (i.e. adjustments to “Social Democracy 2.0”) have been constructive so far. Our recollection is different:

Throughout the Battistelli administration, the resources and facilities for Staff Representation have been consistently reduced to below workable levels, culminating with the last reform, effective from 1st of July 2017. We have repeatedly insisted that we are operating below any workable standard, leading to complete exhaustion of our elected members. We requested from the start sufficient time and meetings in person to progress. Unfortunately the administration did not see the importance and invited mainly to ViCos of 1,5hrs duration. Adding all meetings up we may have just invested about a working day in the matter.

To compensate for the absence of WG time we made further written proposals, essentially following 2 strands:



  • some quick fixes, valid until the end of the current mandate, and aiming at giving a minimal amount of breathing space to the current elected representatives, with a last version dated 24 May 2019. The only change implemented was granting a 75% exemption to the full CSC members (had been reduced from 100% to 50% from 1st of July 2017). None of the other choking issues (time and independence of our nominees in the Appeals Committee; flexibility to distribute unused time; time resources for the LSC Chairs; communication resources, in casu access to emails to all staff, et al.) were considered; 

  • discussions and a written overview table relating to a review of the structure of Staff Representation starting from the next mandate onwards. 



No written comments or substantive feedback on our proposals nor a concrete counter-proposal from the administration side has been received to this day.

Upon suggestion of the administration, we also gathered a commonly agreed upon benchmark questionnaire, which was sent in parallel to the HR administration and staff representation of some 9 other EU agencies or International Organizations that were somewhat similar in size and/or layout. Staff representation has received some answers meanwhile – from which it is clear that we are operating far below any conditions used in any of the contacted IO’s. We have not received any comment on the answers as received by the administration.

A further ViCo on the 11th of September brought again no progress but showed that the Administration continued not to be willing or not in a position to discuss the proposals meaningfully.

The President informed us that a document is now in preparation. We do not know what it will contain – but one thing is sure – it was not discussed in the WG nor with the CSC nor (as been informed) with SUEPO.

Updates about these and remaining topics addressed in the President’s communiqué will follow.

Your Central Staff Committee



An even earlier communication said that "[t]wo WG ViCos in September brought again no progress but showed that the Administration is not willing or not in a position to discuss the proposals meaningfully. E.g. our proposal for a fair approach to Appraisal in Search and Examination has been rejected as it would diminish the line managers responsibility."

Here's the full communication again with highlights:

Status on WG: Adjustments to New Career System



Little progress – broken commitments


Dear colleagues,
 
The Communiqué of the President on Social Dialogue just published on the Intranet suggests that  the discussions in the Working Group on Performance Management (WGPM) (i.e. adjustments to the New career System) have been constructive so far. Our recollection is different:

Following the President’s invitation earlier this year to resume discussions started in 2018 and reconvene the WG on performance management system and procedure for incompetence we submitted our him our proposals and suggestions by an open letter on 19 March 2019.
 
He did not follow our repeated recommendation for the Composition of the Working Group avoiding members who shaped (the implementation of) the performance management system for obvious reasons.
 
Adjusting the new career system making it fit for granting high quality patents, motivating staff and reducing litigation while ensuring long term sustainability is a complex matter. Thus we requested from start sufficient time and meetings in person to progress. Unfortunately the administration did not see the importance and invited mainly to ViCos of 1,5hrs duration. Adding all meetings up we may have just invested about a working day in the matter.

To compensate for the absence of WG time we made further written proposals:




€· Input by the CSC on transitional measures from the OCS to the NCS


€· Input by the CSC on the design of a career path based on merit while enhancing a cooperative working   environment


€· Input by the CSC on some implementation details of the career on:


 


o Orientation for the Appraisal: in Search and Examination
o Appraisal Committee and Harmonisation Committee
o Target Setting (Circular 366)


 
No written comments nor counter-proposals from the administration side have been received to this day.

Two WG ViCos in September brought again no progress but showed that the Administration is not willing or not in a position to discuss the proposals meaningfully. E.g. our proposal for a fair approach to Appraisal in Search and Examination has been rejected as it would diminish the line managers responsibility.
 
Moreover, the President withdrew his commitment to review transitional measures from the OCS to the NCS as also promised to SUEPO in December 2018. And transparency remains still at the discretion of the administration as requested information on average career progress has still not been provided.
 
The President informed us that a document is now in preparation. We do not know what it will contain – but one thing is sure – it was not discussed in the WG nor with the CSC nor (as been informed) with SUEPO.
 


Updates about these and remaining topics addressed in the President’s communiqué will follow.


Your Central Staff Committee


There's much to be said about the above, including the 6 documents/letters/working positions in them. But those are so old that they're almost outdated, so it's better to focus on recent ones instead (covering the same sorts of issues). The main point is, the whole "ViCo" hype should be put in perspective; it is hardly a breakthrough (I did video chats over the Internet even back in the 1990s). The fact that the EPO now outsources those things to the US (remember that Skype was European until Microsoft bought it) is quite revealing w.r.t. data protection policies at the Office. Privacy at the EPO is a total farce.

Recent Techrights' Posts

The Complaint About Brett Wilson LLP - Part II - UK SLAPPs for Americans, SLAPPs for Profit
Brett Wilson LLP has a track record of this kind
Cloudflare Gives Us All Another Reason to Boycott Cloudflare
If Cloudflare wants to use its vast surveillance network (which is what it does as a CDN) to foist paywalls and maybe something worse (like DRM on top), then Cloudflare should be more widely rejected as a company
Someone Expiring Certificates on the Day of the 9/11 Attacks is Not Someone I Would Want Controlling My PC (or Deciding What's Authorised for Booting)
"social justice warriors"
More Microsoft-Red Hat Cross-Pollination as the Company Loses a Managing Director
some people move from Microsoft to Red Hat and some do the opposite
 
Buying From Oneself is Not Business Success
This isn't at all a joking matter even if you already laugh at the whole thing because your pension, savings etc. are tied to this scam at some level
This is How Microsoft's XBox and Entire Consoles (If Not Gaming) Ventures Will Ultimately Die
Ensure you can blame "Tariffs" (politics)? If not "hey hi", the fashionable go-to excuse when businesses fail?
What They Really Hate David Heinemeier Hansson (DHH) for
Nothing to do with code
Smart People Won't Buy 'Smart' Cars
Imagine trying to sell someone a house (proper home) while insisting that it'll need to be demolished 5 or 10 years later, then rebuilt again from scratch on the same vacant lot
The Relationship Between IBM Red Hat and Microsoft, Visualised
This metaphor goes a long way (projects, collaborations, and outsourcing
The Complaint About Brett Wilson LLP - Part III - Spying on Reporters' Families, Chaining Cases for Microsoft Employees Who Demand Censorship of Facts (Even Politely Expressed)
the time seems right to wrap up this introductory series
Links 24/09/2025: "NASA Moving Out of Entire Buildings as It's Gutted" and Purge of Online Critics (Opposing Fascism Becomes Unlawful)
Links for the day
Science is Under Attack
Oligarchy prefers a dumbed-down population
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) Has Reportedly Failed People With Wrong Advice
At the moment the SRA has a PR blunder
The Man Suing Brett Wilson LLP and Gervase de Wilde (5RB)
Now he's probably using the (almost) 200,000 pounds he's supposed to receive to sue Brett Wilson LLP and former colleagues/partners
Slopwatch: A World Wide Web That's Rotting for Companies That Won't Even Exist in a Few Years
some of the junk Google News is promoting
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, September 23, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, September 23, 2025
Links 24/09/2025: Qt Creator 18 Beta, Microsoft Cannot Bail Out "ChatGPT" Anymore, China and US Intensify Censorship
Links for the day
Gemini Links 24/09/2025: Gemlogs and Politics
Links for the day
Links 23/09/2025: Japan Limits Uses of Skinnerboxes ('Smartphones') With Toxic "Apps", Fentanylware (TikTok) Tapped by "MAGAts"
Links for the day
Brett Wilson LLP Has Just Been Sued (by Their Own Clients!)
Vladimir and Alla Yanpolsky sued Brett Wilson LLP in BL-2025-001167 at the end of last week
Mayday: Optus emergency calling crisis
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 23/09/2025: Massive Data Breach, Slop Versus Productivity, and Vista 11 Update Breaks Things Again
Links for the day
Code of Censorship
Extortion is peace
The Free Software Foundation (FSF) Has Un-cancelled the Best People, Just in Time for the Big 4-0
Mr. Oliva should have been there all along (since 2019)
Most "Modern" Technology Makes You Slower and Dumber
Because proprietary software makes you worse off
"What Comes After Free Software?" Wrongly Insinuates We've Reached the Goal (Prison is Not the Goal)
The oil tycoons use similar tactics against environmentalists, giving them fake "wins"
Making More Work Space
I learned the hard way that less is more in circumstances where more means distraction
MAHA is a Lie, Public Officials Never Valued Citizens' Health (They Still Value Private Businesses, Their Sponsors)
Reject demagogues
Free Software Foundation (FSF) Has a New Press Kit for the Weekend After Next Weekend (40th Anniversary)
miles better than social [sic] media [sic] quips, moderated by narcissists and oil tycoons.
Microsoft Had Two Waves of Mass Layoffs This Month (That We Know of) and It'll Get Worse for Microsoft Soon
Will the axe fall again by month's end?
Gemini Links 23/09/2025: Happy Equinox, Photronic Arts, and Perception Cognition
Links for the day
Lessons We've Learned After 17 Years of American Hosting
GAFAM is "all-in" with the "Trump agenda"
Back to Normal Now, We Plan to Do More In-Depth Series (or Multi-part Stories)
Articles (or series thereof) that contain philosophy are important to us
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, September 22, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, September 22, 2025
Microsoft Media is Panicking Amid Mass Layoffs Every Month, H-1B Fees, and "Seattle’s Tech Scene in Trouble"
In "late stage Microsoft", copyleft becomes proprietary
The Next Wave of IBM/Red Hat Layoffs Being Discussed Already
Red Hat is sort of disappearing the way Tivoli did
New Techrights Turns 2
Today starts the third year of the SSG-based Techrights
What Scares Them the Most is Independent News Sites That They Cannot Control and Censor
Wikileaks was a good example of this
If You Don't Control Your Online Platform, Then Someone Else is Controlling You
be (or become) independent
Oracle Started This Year With Slop. Then It Stopped.
Passing fads are like this
Distros That Run on PCs Made 20 Years Ago and Don't Use Systemd
Betas for now
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) Has a Policy on Racism and Sexism
In then future we'll show the misogyny and racial slurs
The Complaint About Brett Wilson LLP - Part I - Abusing British Women on Behalf of American Men Who Abuse American Women
Transparency is important to us, so we've decided to make this series
Slopwatch: Google News and the Evident Slopfarm Infestation
This is what people get about Linux when they query Google for Linux
Links 22/09/2025: Murdochs Might Join Fentanylware (TikTok) 'Investors' (Masters), United Kingdom Recognises Palestinian Statehood
Links for the day
Gemini Links 22/09/2025: Esperanto Music History and Apps For Android
Links for the day
Links 22/09/2025: More American 'Censorship' (Retaliation for Journalism), Cheeto "Might Be Losing His Race Against Time"
Links for the day
The Blob Slop
Give me more words, give me some text
The 50-Pound Note Experiment and the "War on Cash"
Britain is actually seeing a rebound in cash payments, and it's not a temporary phenomenon
Slopwatch: Blaming the Victims for Microsoft's Failures and Plagiarising Phoronix
That's what Google has been reduced to: slop and slopfarms
Links 22/09/2025: Breaches, Windows TCO, and Arrests
Links for the day
Gemini Links 22/09/2025: Rabbit Hole and DeGoogling Fairphone
Links for the day
Links 22/09/2025: Russian War Planes Invade NATO Airspace While Dihydroxyacetone Man Escalates Attack on Free Speech Because of Critics
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, September 21, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, September 21, 2025