10.18.16
Posted in Europe, Patents at 12:39 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
Outcomes of 149th Administrative Council’s meeting at the EPO
Summary: The raw details or a summary thereof, based on the above which serves to confirm what we wrote about several days ago, right after the quarterly meeting had ended
Battistelli is losing (after a coup) and the EPO’s staff regains control of the Office which they work for, based on the outcomes of the 149th Administrative Council’s meeting at the EPO. What does that mean? It means a lot. Last week we covered the outcome based on hearsay from a lot of sources and finally we have the above leak, which helps reinforce what we said at the time. Also, via IP Watch‘s Twitter feed we have just found today’s article that’s titled “EPO Staff Welcome Withdrawal Of Unpopular Disciplinary Proposals”. To quote from this article:
Pressure from staff and now from members of the European Patent Office governing body has forced EPO President Benoît Battistelli to withdraw controversial proposals for disciplining and investigating employees, the Staff Union of the EPO (SUEPO) said on 17 October. The action was welcomed but the situation is far from resolved, staff members say.
The Administrative Council (AC) of the EPO, made of members of the office’s member states, met on 12-13 October. “This session did not go exactly according to plan,” SUEPO said in an update on the latest developments. Many delegations “pointed at indicators of the existing social problems such as the lack of trust in EPO management, the perceived lack of respect for staff, the high level of dissatisfaction among staff,” the union said.
The EPO press office did not respond to a request for comment by press time.
[...]
Staff representatives at the AC told governments they welcomed the change of tone, according to the source. They said that if ongoing disciplinary actions are stayed, SUEPO would consider suspending its strikes until December, the source added.
In its statement on outcomes of the AC meeting, the EPO said only that “two proposals for reform of the investigation and disciplinary procedures will be examined at a later stage.”
The union has been holding demonstrations to demand fundamental rights, the latest of which took placed in Munich and The Hague on 13 October. Each attracted around 600 staff members, it said.
Nothing is solved yet, because AC members appear on the one hand to be making better efforts to protect staff from management but on the other hand have extended the terms of all current vice-presidents, said the source. Council members apparently don’t intend to fire Battistelli, whose term ends on 30 June 2018, said the source.
We have a lot more in the pipeline regarding the EPO and we welcome input from all readers. Accountability is the goal and truth is the means. █
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Posted in Europe, Patents at 12:16 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
For those who conveniently refer to style, not substance
Reference: Style over substance
Summary: Jesper Kongstad does virtually nothing to deny the arguments (or “accusations”) and instead alludes to the style of the writings about him
Recent articles from Techrights have inspired Danish mainstream media coverage regarding the EPO, notably this recent series of Danish stories. We have asked some Scandinavian people to explain to us what was said in the press and we are still trying to digest the message, along with any other new information that it brings up.
“The first one gives details about the “harassment” to which Kongstad is allegedly being subjected.”“For your information,” one reader told us, “Berlingske has just published three pieces about the EPO referring to recent Techrights articles.
“No translations yet but Google Translate gives some idea of the content.”
Here is an overview of the stories:
1. The first one gives details about the “harassment” to which Kongstad is allegedly being subjected.
Chikane mod dansk topembedsmand: Hængt ud for skattesnyd (Danish link)
(“Harassment of top Danish official – denunciation for tax evasion”)
“The next one cites some comments from the Danish patent expert George Brock-Nannestad who is critical of the direction being taken by EPO management.”Direktøren for Patent- og Varemærkestyrelsen, der også er formand for det europæiske patentkontor EPO, tæppebombes med beskyldninger om smarte investeringer og dyremishandling.
(“The Director of the DKPTO who is also Chairman of the EPO [Administrative Council] has been carpet-bombed with accusations about smart investments and cruelty to animals”)
2. The next one cites some comments from the Danish patent expert George Brock-Nannestad who is critical of the direction being taken by EPO management.
Dansk patentekspert: Ledelsen på forkert kurs (Danish link)
(“Danish patent expert: The management is on the wrong course”).
En kontaktperson fra den centrale fagforening hos EPO, SUEPO (Staff Union of the European Patent Office), afviser i en mail over for Berlingske, at SUEPO samarbejder med den kritiske internet-blog Techrights.com om chikane mod EPOs bestyrelsesformand Jesper Kongstad, som er direktør for Patent- og Varemærkestyrelsen.
Den pågældende har ifølge eget udsagn været udsat for repressalier fra ledelsen og ønsker derfor ikke at få sit navn frem.
Det er en mangeårig europæisk patentagent (European Patent Attorney) til gengæld ikke bange for. EPO-ledelsen er på vildspor og er ved at ødelægge den europæiske patentorganisation, mener George Brock-Nannestad.
“This one refers to “anonymous activists” who have complained about Kongstad and called for an investigation.”(“In an email to Berlingske a contact person from the central trade union at the EPO, SUEPO (Staff Union of the European Patent Office), denies that SUEPO has cooperated with the critical Internet blog Techrights in the harassment of EPO chairman Jesper Kongstad, who is the Director of the Patent and Trademark Office.
Those questioned are according to themselves exposed to reprisals from management and therefore do not wish to be named.
On the other hand, a longtime European patent agent (European Patent Attorney) is not afraid. EPO management is on the wrong track and is destroying the European Patent Organisation, says George Brock-Nannestad.”)
3. The last one seems to be a bit of a puff piece where they give Kongstad a bit of column space to explain the necessity for the “reform” process at the EPO and how wonderful the working conditions there are…
Lønninger og goder »uden sidestykke i Europa« (Danish link)
(“Salaries and benefits “unparalleled in Europe ‘”)
De ansatte demonstrerer
EPO har et budget på omkring 15 milliarder kr. og behandler årligt flere hundrede tusinde ansøgninger om patenter fra europæiske virksomheder. Konflikten i EPO har de seneste par år ført til voldsomme anklager om magtmisbrug, brud på retssikkerheden og beskyldninger om undertrykkelse af fagforeninger. Jesper Kongstad var i sidste uge til bestyrelsesmøde i EPOs hovedkvarter i München, hvor ledelsen, som det er sket flere gange før, blev mødt med demonstrationer fra de ansatte.
“It’s typical to accuse the messenger or the style rather than the substance.”(“The staff demonstrates
The EPO has a budget of about 15 billion DKK and each year it processes hundreds of thousands of applications for patents from European companies. The conflict in the EPO has in recent years led to fierce accusations of abuse of power, breach of legal certainty and accusations of repression of trade unions. Last week Jesper Kongstad attended a board meeting in the EPO headquarters in Munich, where as has happened several times before, the management was met with protests from the employees.”)
As of today, there is an additional (fourth) article. This one refers to “anonymous activists” who have complained about Kongstad and called for an investigation.
»Professor Gadget« og »Freiherr von Bimbes« om smædekampagne: Dansk topembedsmand bør undersøges
“Den danske topembedsmand Jesper Kongstad er genstand for massiv chikane i forbindelse med en konflikt i det europæiske patentkontor. Anonyme bagmænd uddyber her hvorfor.”
(“The Danish top official Jesper Kongstad is attracting a lot of harassment in connection with the conflict in the European Patent Office. Anonymous activists explain why here.”)
“It’s not easy to find native English speakers that are fluent in Danish, which is what a quality translation would entail.”We have asked for some feedback from people who can comprehend a bit of Danish. “Kongstad complains about the personal attacks and refers to Techrights,” one person told us. “Your style is accused of not being ‘Danish’, also the »Professor Gadget« and »Freiherr von Bimbes« are mentioned. I hope they / he are keeping it civilized and more ‘Danish’.
“You’re quoted in that one,” the person said about the second article and regarding the third we have been told that “[i]t’s good that its in the Economics section of the paper. Though I take issue with their use of the term ‘chikane’ but it’s not directed at Techrights explicitly.”
It’s typical to accuse the messenger or the style rather than the substance.
“Are we going to see an actual debunking from Kongstad or is he just hoping that nobody will bother finding out what he has been up to?”We hope to get translations of these soon. It’s not easy to find native English speakers that are fluent in Danish, which is what a quality translation would entail.
Are we going to see an actual debunking from Kongstad or is he just hoping that nobody will bother finding out what he has been up to? Our Web site has been barely accessibly today because too many people do try to figure out what Kongstad is doing in his home. █
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10.17.16
Posted in Europe, Patents at 4:07 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
EPO Getaway Vehicle, Baaderstrasse
Summary: Interesting updates from the European Patent Office (EPO), where things have taken a turn for the worse for Battistelli while Željko Topić secures an extension of his notorious contract
Another EPO demonstration has ended (there were two last week) and more news is starting to trickle in (during the weekend and the start of this week). This is a roundup of items sent to us by readers.
No Right to Remain Silent in Eponia?
“God complex has no place in such an institution.”“The document CA/52/16 Rev. 1 (page 5/20, 27.),” according to a reader remarking on this post of ours, “reveals part of the reasoning ‘Blatterstelli’ used to defend his position that EPO staff should not have the right to remain silent when being investigated. The reasoning is indeed plain wrong. See the 2nd but last comment…”
“Battistelli Into a Corner”
“We followed the recent series of TechRights postings about the October meeting of the EPO Administrative Council with interest,” another reader told us.
“There were some hopeful signs during that meeting,” the reader continued. “The Administrative Council more or less pushed Battistelli into a corner with his latest “reform” proposals for the internal EPO Stasi causing him to throw a “hissy fit” and withdraw these proposals for amendment until December.
The overall sentiment we have come across (based on information we could not publish either way, for safety of our sources) is that the meeting was one Battistelli would rather forget. God complex has no place in such an institution.
“Rumours that Battistelli Has Made Unsuccessful Approaches to the Swiss Government to Have Grossenbacher Removed as Head of the Swiss Delegation.”
Last night we wrote about Roland Grossenbacher, who we understand has historically been close to Battistelli. Well, that may no longer be the case.
“Predictable behaviour from a Nicolas Sarkozy ally?”“It is even reported that his longtime ally Grossenbacher turned against him during this debate,” a source told us. “In fact some reliable internal sources claim that Grossenbacher has become openly critical of Battistelli in recent times and that relations between the two have soured to the point where Battistelli regrets having declared Grossenbacher as “honorary Chairman” of the Council back in 2009 when Battistelli himself was the Chairman. There are even rumours that Battistelli has made unsuccessful approaches to the Swiss government to have Grossenbacher removed as head of the Swiss delegation. Grossenbacher is officially retired as Director of the Swiss national IP Office but he still continues as head of the Swiss delegation to the EPO. If the rumours that Grossenbacher has really has turned against Battistelli are true then we could be in for a duel of the silverback “alpha males” at the next meeting of the Administrative Council in December.”
We previously heard of Battistelli trying to remove other heads of delegations and reportedly 'buying' them too. Predictable behaviour from a Nicolas Sarkozy ally? Do we want a patent office that’s as stigmatised (or corrupt) as political parties?
Željko Topić Gets Awarded
“Despite the hopeful signs which emerged during the last meeting,” a source told us, “there were also some details which are likely to have escaped the casual observer but which EPO insiders have seen as a signal that Battistelli is still able to get his way with Council on personnel issues. Although not yet officially announced, it has been reported by sources close to several delegations that two key members of Team Battistelli managed to get their contracts renewed due to persistent and intense lobbying by “Il Duce”. These were the Vice-Presidents Alberto Casado Cerviño and Željko Topić.
“Do we want a patent office that’s as stigmatised (or corrupt) as political parties?”“After the Council meeting finished the Presidential getaway car with its CD “Corps Diplomatique” plate was seen parked in the Baaderstrasse just around the corner from the EPO headquarters (see photo above) where the chauffeur patiently waited for his master who was rumoured to have gone for a slap-up meal with his Vice-Presidents to celebrate the prolongation of their terms.
“The reported extension of the contracts for the Vice-Presidents seems to be a good occasion for an update about the beneficiaries, Alberto Casado Cerviño and Željko Topić.”
We wrote about this back in May. It sure looks as though EPO management isn’t genuinely interested in repairing its reputation. █
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10.16.16
Posted in Deception, Europe, Patents at 3:39 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
‘Buying’ or paying for the ‘truth’ (exactly the opposite) is the latest stunt or modus operandi from this chronic liar
Source (original): Rospatent
Summary: Having paid the media and attempted to scare/intimidate staff into silence (even among one another), Battistelli now pays some firms to lie for him and present the lies while staff representatives are blocked from entering the presentation
THE EPO is wasting money — at the command of Benoît Battistelli — on all sorts of controversial lobbying events (at times grooming fraudsters), PR agencies, private spy agencies, media “partners” (this means paid-for press coverage), and lots of horrible things that each in its own right should be a scandal. Battistelli is now faking 'facts' (for a fee), trying to make up an illusion of social harmony at the Office and then setting up a so-called ‘Social Conference’ by which to disseminate the lies [1, 2].
“Battistelli is an autocrat that nobody is permitted to criticise.”How does Battistelli get to keep his job?
Well, look who ‘oversees’ him. Battistelli is an autocrat that nobody is permitted to criticise.
The EPO Social Conference “is gone. It is done. It is time to bury it because it is smelling up our professional lives,” said this one new comment. To quote the full thing:
A Social Undertakers Conference says…
My dear Eponians talk about it, rehash it, rethink it, cross analyze it, debate it, respond to it, get paranoid about it, compete with it, complain about it, immortalize it, cry over it, kick it, defame it, stalk it, gossip about it, pray over it, put it down or dissect its motives before it continues to rot in our brains. It is dead. It is over. It is gone. It is done. It is time to bury it because it is smelling up our professional lives. Join me and bury it!
Repeating the lies yet again at the end of last week (second time), the EPO wrote: “Constructive discussion between staff and management about the future at the EPO Social Conference” (this links to the EPO’s Web site again, same page as before — a page that we already rebutted).
“Check the invoices from Battistelli. He paid a lot of money to keep the Dutch and German media under control.”Where was the staff which this so-called conference was about? Staff was outside protesting in front of the building in Munich at the time. So much for ‘social’ and a ‘conference’. It was more like a staff demonstration (photo below).
Where was the media at the time of the demonstration? Check the invoices from Battistelli. He paid a lot of money to keep the Dutch and German media under control. To be more precise and specific, he had the EPO pay a lot of money to cover up his own epic abuses. █
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Posted in Europe, Patents at 3:01 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
Longtime “Friendship” and “Cronyism” (or Loyalty) Perhaps an Appointment Criterion?
Image source
Summary: Benoît Battistelli’s predecessor Roland Grossenbacher, who has a track record of protection and support for Battistelli (no matter the magnitude of abuses), reportedly takes a key position with Battistelli’s approval, debunking the notion that the appeal boards will enjoy greater (perceived) independence from the Office
THE EPO (Organisation) does not function — or no longer functions — like an institution with separate branches or pillars. In principle it’s supposed to (as envisioned by the EPC), but in practice, as we noted here before, Roland Grossenbacher and Benoît Battistelli appeared to have ganged up against President Brimelow [1, 2, 3, 4] (previous EPO President) and now have have another odd couple swapping seats at the Council, namely Benoît Battistelli and Jesper Kongstad. What happened to the Council as Battistelli’s ‘boss’ (or watchdog)? They’re inseparable under Battistelli and he even jokes about it, saying it would take an “earthquake” for the Council to stop being a lapdog. He allegedly gives them gifts at the expense of the Office, European taxpayers, or both.
“EPO staff — those who have been at the Office long enough — are no strangers to Mr. Grossenbacher.”We are saddened to see that things keep getting worse rather than better. Battistelli is about to totally destroy the EPO, not just demolish the boards that he loathes so much (collective punishment for a judge, UPC fantasies, and decreased patent quality that must remain undetectable for Battistelli’s lies to stick).
EPO staff — those who have been at the Office long enough — are no strangers to Mr. Grossenbacher. He’s not exactly liked, either. Several years ago SUEPO’s front page said “there was a demonstration held in Bern, in front of the Swiss Patent Office – home of Mr. Grossenbacher, the Chairman of the Administrative Council. National and individual interests (many of which financial) are dominating the decision making process and making it increasingly difficult for staff to maintain a high quality output of valid patents.”
Mr. Grossenbacher is no longer spending quite so much time at the EPO, but when he visits the EPO he continues to protect his friend, Mr. Battistelli, who is also protected by Kongstad, a Danish man with plenty of conflicts of interest and a large 'slaughterhouse' of chinchillas. Speaking of which, see the following new comment. It spells out CHINCHILLA (this funny new ode):
Bringbackalib. says
C uddly little furry things on the farm
H ere, the Danish government sees no harm
I n an opening statement from the AC Chair
N o scandal here, no scandal there
C aptain Batters got little or nothing waved through
H ave the AC FINALLY landed a coup
I ‘m delighted to learn VP3 has been thrown some meat
L ittle less pay, but keeps him off the street
L astly, a threatening object was found under a delegates car
A rogue laptop, good weekend, I’m off to the bar
As we noted here before, the writers at IP Kat do not cover EPO scandals anymore. Perhaps the EPO scared them when it imposed sanctions on them and the Kat ran away with its tail between its legs, to use somewhat of a pun (or a catty metaphor).
“All along it was expected that Battistelli would play a role in the appointments and put in high positions people who are loyal to him and can help impose the dismissal of a judge.”“New BOAC constituted,” one new comment said this weekend, but “IPKat asleep as usual.”
This links to an article in German from Mathieu Klos of Juve. It contains new information which an automated translation (can anyone translate this manually for us, with reliable facts and no risks of mistranslation?) highlights: “According to JUVE information from the environment of the Board of Directors, the three representatives of the Member States are Bucura Ionescu, Patricia García-Escudero-Márquez and Roland Grossenbacher. Ionescu is Director-General of the Romanian Patent Office and heads the Romanian delegation to the EPO. García-Escudero-Márquez, head of the Spanish delegation, also leads the national Patent and Trademark Office. Grossenbacher represents Switzerland and is the honorary president of the Board of Directors.”
All along it was expected that Battistelli would play a role in the appointments and put in high positions people who are loyal to him and can help impose the dismissal of a judge. “Disciplinary case still open,” says the article’s translation under a heading. Here’s more of this automated translation (we manually corrected only typos in the names):
However, the Board of Directors has not taken any decision in the pending disciplinary proceedings against a Board of Appeal. This was suspended in December 2014 by Benoît Battistelli. As a disciplinary oversight, the Board had then called for the removal of his office. However, a prerequisite for this is a corresponding recommendation by the Enlarged Board of Appeal. The highest court in the EPO had refused this in June, after Battistelli had intervened in the proceedings.
According to the statutes of the Office, the imprisonment is no longer possible. The Board of Directors had reportedly instructed its Chairman, Jesper Kongstad, to work out a solution. The case was on the agenda of yesterday’s meeting, but no decision was taken.
On the other hand, according to information received from the board of directors, the Member States rejected two proposals by Battistelli concerning the revision of the provision on disciplinary and investigations. The reform had been called for by the administrative board to defuse a conflict between the authorities and the trade unions. Here, Battistelli has to improve.
Does the judge need to be found innocent (or not guilty) five times in a row for Battistelli to stop taunting him? Each time this happens Battistelli makes a mockery not just of the Office but the whole Organisation. Not to mention how bad it makes Jesper Kongstad look…
To quote another new comment:
Yes. He remains suspended. Until the end of his term.
In accordance with the will of the President.
If we are told that the boards enjoy independence (a lie), then we must assess who’s in charge of them and remember that Battistelli personally plays a role in these appointments.
Wikipedia calls Benoît Battistelli “a French civil servant” and it won’t be long before an edit made to say “a French evil servant” would be totally appropriate. █
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Posted in Deception, Europe, Patents at 2:00 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
Self-fulfilling prophecy methods continue to be flung at the press
Summary: Refusing to let the UPC stay in its grave, Team UPC keeps digging up and dishing out UPC misinformation, in front of an audience that need not be preached to as it’s already converted (effectively an echo chamber)
THE ‘baby’ of the President of the EPO has long been the UPC, even before it was known as “UPC” and even before he was President of the EPO. Based on an exchange between the EPO’s spokespeople and Dr. Glyn Moody, author of Rebel Code and an excellent journalist, the UPC has a lot to do with the current turmoil (so-called ‘reform’) at the Office. One must recognise the fact that the social unrest at the EPO and the UPC are almost inseparable.
“One must recognise the fact that the social unrest at the EPO and the UPC are almost inseparable.”Now that the UPC is virtually dead (if not just in the UK then worldwide) we keep seeing efforts by the EPO to replace London with somewhere like Milan. We mentioned this a few days ago and just before the week closed we saw duplicate tweets from the EPO (two on a single day), stressing the same point about an event in Italy.
First tweet: “EPO lawyers & European patent attorneys will be on hand in Italy at the next event tailored to PCT users’ needs: http://buzz.mw/b1ueq_f”
Second tweet: “EPO lawyers & European patent attorneys will be on hand in Italy at the next event tailored to PCT users’ needs: http://buzz.mw/b1uea_f”
“The Brexit vote was not a “speed bump” but a death knell.”We suspect, albeit it’s still somewhat speculative, that Battistelli is trying to grease up Italian politicians so as to make Milan the new London. He’s not alone as Team UPC, a conspiracy of truly nefarious entities, does the same thing and 3 days ago IP Watch gave a platform to the liars of Team UPC (behind a paywall). To quote the public portion (which is the only part we can see to debunk): “Britain’s vote to leave the European Union is just another “speed bump” along the path to a European unified patent and patent court, the head of the committee tasked with preparing the way for the new system said during a lively session at the 13 October London IP Summit. Others aren’t so sure, since Brexit has raised many complex questions, not least of which is whether there is the political will in the UK or EU to move ahead.”
The Brexit vote was not a “speed bump” but a death knell. We already wrote many dozens of articles about it (some of them very long) and one must remember that these UPC boosters have a track record of lying. They even advertised bogus UPC jobs that did not exist and will never exist. That’s how horrible these people are. They also stomp on democracy. █
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Posted in Europe, Patents at 12:57 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
EPO article in French:
EPO article in Greek:
EPO article in English:
And lots more to come…
Summary: European media is beginning to cover scandals associated with the European Patent Office (EPO), in spite of Battistelli’s attempt to silence and manipulate it, at the expense of millions of Euros per year
TIRED AFTER a sleepless night (covering EPO news right after the historic meeting had ended), we have finally recovered and can now resume coverage of the topic. Here is a 5-part explanation of what happened on Wednesday and Thursday (behind closed doors and in the streets of The Hague):
- EPO Administrative Council Meeting Turning Point – Part I: Protest at The Hague and the Huge Things at Stake
- EPO Administrative Council Meeting Turning Point – Part II: More Photos From Today’s Protest at The Hague
- EPO Administrative Council Meeting Turning Point – Part III: How Benoît Battistelli Planned to Expand His Attacks on EPO Staff (But Failed)
- EPO Administrative Council Meeting Turning Point – Part IV: When ~1,200 EPO Workers March in Protest and European Politicians Say “Battistelli Must Go”
- EPO Administrative Council Meeting Turning Point – Part V: “Siegfried Bross as President of the Boards of Appeal!”
Some more information about the The Hague demonstration was sent to us at the end of the week. The below message was posted by SUEPO The Hague on Facebook (late on Thursday or on Friday): “about 600 colleagues gathered today peacefully in The Hague to again and again request fairness and justice at EPO, this after another demo in Munich where also ca. 600 colleagues gathered to ask for the same.
“NL MP John Kerstens and FR MP Philip Cordery were again supportive of the demonstrants since they care for fundamental rights.
“THANKS TO YOU ALL”
We have meanwhile received a translation of an article in French, published just days before the above in one of the largest papers in France. In English (with our emphasis):
In the discreet and civilized world of international organizations, the event is a very rare practice. The meetings scheduled Tuesday, 11 October, in Munich, and Thursday, 13 October, in The Hague, by the examiners of the European Patent Office (EPO) are yet just the latest in a long series [of meetings] started in 2013. The employees [of the EPO] have used this method to alert the 38 States meeting in the Council of Administration on 12 and 13 October about a workplace grievance which has remained unresolved for more than three years.
“This is not about money, money will not be the issue. We are not talking about remuneration to the “Board”. With more than EUR 5 000, the sum payable to employees on being hired, to which is added the payment of a premium based on being employed as an expatriate [that is, working in a country that is considered to be not the employees’ home country], and with children’s school-fees paid, and with a few other benefits, the employees will know that they are well paid. To attract scientists from all countries, the EPO Agency has had to indeed align on the best paid officials in Europe. Except that the money is not everything.
The EPO is one such international organization as its role is to identify a narrow field of /small handle/ intellectual property/ in the world, [and] the legal /status to share/ basis on which it can be made available to others/. The [EPO], whose headquarters is located in Munich and has branch offices in Berlin, The Hague and Vienna, employs 7 000 people to examine the applications of inventors, and issue in three languages the valuable patents of which it holds the monopoly for forty years.
In July 2010, the French Benoît Battistelli took over the reins. It is shortly after the arrival of this former Director General of the National Institute of Industrial Property (INPI) that the working conditions have deteriorated,…”
The above is imperfect and in fact an improved and complete translation would be very useful. As it stands, however, it does help one get the gist of this story.
As of today, SUEPO links to this article in Greek, whose headline is translated as saying “EPO: Patented medieval working conditions” (manual translations would be desirable); in addition to this, published on a Friday morning by Kieren McCarthy of The Register was the following detailed article that describes Battistelli as “terrifying boss”. It’s based on an open letter that we mentioned here before and it says:
Staff at the European Patent Office (EPO) have asked its administrative council to adopt new guidelines to protect them from the organization’s rampaging president.
The open letter [PDF] urges the council – which meets this week in Munich – to adopt the same rules for disciplinary proceedings and internal investigations that are being developed at another scandal-hit international organization, the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
The letter comes as EPO president Benoit Battistelli continues an extraordinary campaign of intimidation of union leaders at the organization that has led to repeated strikes at the EPO and a determined effort to push the president out at the administrative council’s previous meeting in July.
Since that failed attempt to boot Battistelli out, he has continued efforts to eject a number of union officials who resisted wide-ranging reform efforts, despite having been formally rebuked by the council and instructed to stop with his investigations.
A number of union officials have been suspended on questionable charges and have been under constant pressure to quit the organization, including the threat of withdrawals of their pensions. The suspensions follow an extraordinary campaign of intimidation through a special investigation unit set up by Battistelli, which included tapping people’s phones and sending investigators to their homes, as well as planting highly damaging allegations about specific individuals in the press.
Battistelli’s efforts to rid himself of anyone who opposes his reform proposals have been stymied by the organization’s structures, so the president has made repeated efforts to rewrite EPO rules to give himself increasing amounts of power over decisions – leading us to dub him “King Battistelli.”
[...]
Despite the allegations and extremely strong criticism leveled at WIPO by the US Congress, in which it called WIPO “the FIFA of UN agencies,” Gurry is still in his position and most recently attempted to get rid of its staff council in order to exert greater personal power over the organization.
The WIPO guidelines are designed to protect staff in future from a management team with its own agenda. EPO’s staff hope that by pushing for them to be adopted by the EPO too, it will both protect them and flag the continued abuses of Battistelli and his team.
The comments on this are few and rather short. No doubt the EPO harms the EU by giving it a bad name. As one person put it:
And yet, for largely political reasons, the Administrative Council – which consists of representatives from all the European countries that make up the EPO – refuses to fire the president.
It’s stuff like this that means I’m beginning to warm up to the whole Brexit thing.
“If only it were being run on the same lines as the IICSA,” one person responded. “Except that the EPO is not an organ of the EU – at all,” another person added. But a lot of people don’t know this. To them, the EPO is like an arm of the EU or the very notion/philosophy that Europe should be united with its centre/heart in the main continent.
Another person remarked: “Reforms?
“As with those done in the UK, you need to indicate the possible reality by calling them “reforms”.
“This quotation marks would indicate that someone had used the word but that they were not necessarily truly an advancement or improvement.”
A person then responded with: “Perhaps the best reform is to bulldoze the EPO and WIPO management and start over? I recommend a Cat D10.”
Regarding the name “King Battistelli” — a term which McCarthy routinely repeats (not because of McCarthyism but because the staff of the EPO calls him that in a derogative fashion) — another person wrote: “By the sound of all this – why ‘King’ when ‘Duce’ seems so much more appropriate?”
As far as we are aware, there are quite a few journalists and several publications that are going to write about the EPO in the coming week. Battistelli wasted a lot of money trying to prevent this, but he cannot just devour all the media all around the world. It would instantaneously bankrupt the whole Office. █
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10.14.16
Posted in Europe, Patents at 12:19 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz
Image courtesy: campact.de
Summary: Retired judge Siegfried Broß is jokingly named as the person who should head the independent Boards of Appeal that keep the Office in check
In the first, second, third and fourth parts we gave away pretty much all the information which we are safe to publicly share. There is more that we know, but now isn’t the best time to speak on all matters. The EPO will certainly issue some face-saving statement some time very soon. Don’t trust it. The EPO’s statements have had a 100% track record of lying as of late (unless they speak of some major tragedy in an opportunistic appeal for sympathy). Here is a recent classic.
“The EPO’s statements have had a 100% track record of lying as of late (unless they speak of some major tragedy in an opportunistic appeal for sympathy).”“I am hearing some very encouraging news from the EPO today,” I stated earlier tonight, and “I will write about this later.” Whatever the EPO may say today (or later than today), we are prepared to rebut/correct/respond. “Danish journalists get interested,” we have meanwhile been told regarding the situation. In fact, we have been in touch with some. Will the press write about the latest issues or has the media been paid enough to be thoroughly gagged across Europe (self-censorship and spiking of important stories)? We shall see…
One person asked the other day: “Are there any news about the fate of the suspended member of the BoA?”
Well, it seems as though it’s forever limbo for him, at least while Battistelli stays in power and his term is not officially over. Frankly, after making some jokes about it (not especially quote-worthy) the subject of the BoA’s member’s new boss came up, then more notably (albeit still rather funny, maybe not by intention) a response to a comment mentioned here the other day:
“VP4 has applied for the job as President of the Boards of Appeal”
Siegfried Bross as President of the Boards of Appeal! – who’s with me?
VP4 is Battistelli’s ‘bulldog’ and Siegfried Broß, whom we wrote about several times before, is like the ‘anti-Battistelli’. Here is a polite reply to this:
Siegfried Bross as President of the Boards of Appeal! – who’s with me?
Certainly not Blatterstelly and his chums in the Admin Council.
The Prof. has publicly exposed them as the parcel of rogues that they are:
http://ipkitten.blogspot.de/2015/11/former-judge-says-actions-of-ac-and.html
And the Procurator-General of the EPO, VP5 is also likely to take a dim view of the public criticism of that exquisite Corsican delicacy “la justice à la sauce Battistelli”:
http://ipkitten.blogspot.de/2015/11/by-juve-epo-responds-to-professor-bro.html
With enemies like that his prospects of securing the job – were he interested it – would be sub-zero.
But someho I doubt whether the good Professor would even be interested in a role as a second-grade Kapo in the wilderness of Haar.
Whatever happened next at the EPO, it sure looks like Battistelli’s plans come tumbling down and he just isn’t getting his way anymore. Siegfried Broß, who was on Bavarian television and Juve (several times on this topic, which he is very familiar with), often compared the situation at Eponia to that of Guantánamo Bay. Could Eponia be redeemed before the entire Office (and Organisation which recognises "a crisis") becomes a footnote of history? We certainly hope so. Eponia needs to recognise, respect, accept, follow, obey, and/or embrace the Rule of Law. █
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