Bonum Certa Men Certa

Patent Maximalists Are Still Trying to Create a Patent Bubble in India

China is their "gold standard" because it grants a lot of patents on just about anything, even algorithms

City Palace, Udaipur



Summary: Litigation maximalists and patent zealots continue to taunt India, looking for an opportunity to sue over just about anything including abstract ideas because that's what they derive income from

EARLIER this week we mentioned IAM's puff piece for Dolby, which strives to encourage patent aggression in India. These companies make little more than patents and profit from "licensing" (otherwise they resort to lawsuits, either directly or indirectly). The EPO has already been tilted into this trap, whereas the USPTO moves further away from it after judges, lawmakers and so on recognised the threat.

"Last year IAM repeatedly shamed and smeared India over its unwillingness to allow software patents."IAM, the patent trolls' lobby, is still promoting partners that are patent aggressors ahead/amid their patent lobbying event, facilitated by IAM as usual. Check the list of sponsors; it's rather revealing. It's like a litigation powerhouse/cartel's think tank and IAM gloats about it using phrases like "create maximum IP value" (they also call patent-trolling "monetisation"). They tweet things like this: "difficulty of obtaining business method patents makes protecting IP rights through contractual means all the more important" (remember that India does not allow business method patents and software patents).

Last year IAM repeatedly shamed and smeared India over its unwillingness to allow software patents. We documented plenty of examples. IAM is basically a pressure group and to find out who backs this pressure group check the lists of sponsors. Even the EPO's PR agency is among them. And lots of patent trolls. They're not always transparent enough about it, just rather evasive and smug.

"IAM is basically a pressure group and to find out who backs this pressure group check the lists of sponsors."Yesterday, as usual, IAM wrote about "Chinese patent explosion". When it looks like a bubble, sounds like a bubble, smells like a bubble etc. then it's definitely a patent bubble. But IAM fronts for patent trolls, so it's loving it! Trolling has soared in China. Massive growth. IAM would just call that "NPE" or "monetisation"...

Yesterday (same as above) Watchtroll's Meredith Addy used bizarre sunscreen comparisons/analogies to direct towards China scaremongering, by which she meant to lobby for patent maximalism and Armageddon (again) in the US. She wrote this:

This of course alludes to the ongoing erosion of patent values domestically, while an increasing number of patents are being sought in other jurisdictions, including in China.

Leave aside for a moment a judgment about the innovation economy in China. What are our priorities? Growing the US economy through a stable and fruitful environment for innovators? Or government micro-management of issues that should be handled in the home?


"Growing the US economy" by giving more jobs to litigators? That is what she meant. Because these people got accustomed to making a living out of making other people's (technical people) lives miserable. She already revealed where she stands when she wrote a rant a month ago at Watchtroll.

"The question is, what's more important? People who speak in court (and threaten behind closed doors/in legal letters) or people who actually produce stuff?"Remember that what's good for patent law firms (or patent troll firms) is often bad for technical firms and vice versa. The question is, what's more important? People who speak in court (and threaten behind closed doors/in legal letters) or people who actually produce stuff?

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