09.03.19

EPO Cannot With a Straight Face Lecture People About the Law (Which It Routinely and Knowingly Violates)

Posted in Europe, Law, Patents at 6:51 am by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

“The Moral Law tells us the tune we have to play: our instincts are merely the keys.” –C. S. Lewis

Summary: The morally corrupt EPO has not improved in any way whatsoever, but here it goes ‘on tour’ worldwide, lecturing people about obeying the law

The (latest) ‘Official’ Journal has just been mentioned again by the European Patent Office (EPO). It was used by corrupt Battistelli to spam for his other employer last year. Corruption such as this had become mundane even before António Campinos came and the same goes for massive declines in the quality of European Patents. Only the catchphrases and buzzwords are changing; software patents in Europe are nowadays being disguised using some other acronyms and cryptic hype waves.

There’s no simple way to put it; to put it bluntly, the EPO is deeply corrupt. We have many more stories in the pipeline (waiting for the right moment to report on). There’s an old saying about judging someone — or something — based on its/her/his friends. That’s very much applicable to the EPO. Consider Elizabeth Holmes.

“There’s no simple way to put it; to put it bluntly, the EPO is deeply corrupt.”This week, i.e. yesterday, Watchtroll protects a fraud (“HBO Tells Only Part of ‘Inventor’ Elizabeth Holmes’ Story” by Bruce Berman). There’s no “other” part. It’s a massive fraud. Of course it’s not helping that the EPO regularly associates with — and is “mates” with — Watchtroll! It’s also pretty bad that the EPO helped make Elizabeth Holmes famous. Her ‘market value’ skyrocketed because of these stupid “Inventor Awards”. Seeing Watchtroll’s attempt to defend a fraud isn’t so surprising. They’ve defended even worse and they regularly attack judges. They attack justice itself. As we put it in our wiki page, “Watchtroll, or “IP Watchdog” as it calls itself, is a strident site that mostly represents the interests of patent trolls.”

Yesterday the EPO retweeted the EU’s IPR Helpdesk as saying: “Boost your knowledge on #business strategy and #IP management at the High-Growth Technology Business Conference by @EPOorg and the Licensing Executives Society International (LESI): Dublin, 4-5 November 2019. Registration is open now – so save your seat…”

Why does the EPO keep cooperating and collaborating with front groups of patent trolls (which is what LESI is)? This is a betrayal of Europe. Why does the EU actively participate in promotion of LESI? Does it not understand what an embarrassment this becomes for the EU? Putting the UPC advocacy aside…

“Why does the EPO keep cooperating and collaborating with front groups of patent trolls (which is what LESI is)?”As we said last week, Team UPC and the EPO are becoming an existential threat to the EU because they’re a credibility crisis. I myself am strongly in favour of the EU, so it pains me to see what the EPO gets away with. The EU’s interests ought to be putting an end to the EPO’s abuses, not looking the other way or actively covering up these abuses.

A blogger who is strongly against the EU has just mentioned a bunch of patent trolls in relation to Qualcomm’s antitrust ruling; he regularly complains about patent trolls coming to his country, Germany, having already campaigned against software patents for a very long time. InterDigital too is mentioned in his latest post. Large and publicly-traded patent troll is what InterDigital is. It’s American and it already turns the UK (and Europe as a whole) into a fertile troll infestation ground. As another new blog post notes:

Earlier this month, yet another SEP/FRAND case was brought in the UK. This time it was filed by InterDigital against Lenovo concerning its 4G and 3G wireless technology. Parallel proceedings were also commenced in the US (US District Court in Delaware – here) after the UK filing. According to the press release, the claim was filed after almost 10 years of negotiations between the parties and more than 6 years since InterDigital last initiated patent litigation. InterDigital is seeking a declaration that the terms it offered to Lenovo are FRAND, a determination of such a licence and a FRAND injunction.

Take note of the patents in question. This is the EPO’s fault, at least in part. The EPO has taken sides; it sidles with trolls and sides with litigation firms.

“In that regard, the EPO itself acts like a patent troll. It’s embracing tactics of intimidation and extortion.”Suffice to say, European media almost never writes about this. Sara Barker’s new puff piece (amplifying the EPO’s Christoph Ernst) is more of less becoming the ‘norm’. There was more like it last week, in several Asian English-speaking sites. It’s like the EPO totally controls the media. No wonder. Some of the media has literally been bribed by the EPO; poor use of our money, no doubt…

Others, including us, were repeatedly sent threats from the EPO’s lawyers. In that regard, the EPO itself acts like a patent troll. It’s embracing tactics of intimidation and extortion. What it does is illegal, but it enjoys immunity, which it is eager to perpetually exploit.

Go ahead, Dr. Ernst, explain to us how the corrupt patent office that breaks the law and commits crimes can honestly pretend to value law enforcement. Here comes the puff piece:

The European Patent Office (EPO) is making a renewed effort to work with Asia to address a growing number of patent applications within the region.

The EPO says that Singapore and other parts of Southeast Asia contribute to a growing number of patent applications that come from beyond the European Union member state system.

According to EPO vice president Dr Christoph Ernst, more than half (53%) of the patent applications received in recent years have come from countries including Singapore, China, Japan, Korea, and the United States.

So the EPO is barely even European.

Remember that Dr. Ernst was given as an 'award' a subservient job from the person whom he was supposed to oversee. Today’s EPO remains a complete and utter mess that nonchalantly breaks laws (ethical breaches are an understatement because the EPO preys on the vulnerable, the ill, the disabled) while expecting others to respect patent law, i.e. to respect monopolies of (typically) rich barons of a globalised economy. As for judges? The EPO sends them to ‘exile’ where many disabled people were murdered. Infamous suburb. As if to make a ‘point’…

Dr. Ernst’s educational background and professional experience (and knowledge of history) surely makes him well aware of these ethical issues. Apparently he just doesn’t care; he’ll retire soon. █

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