Bonum Certa Men Certa

The European Patent Office Has Become the 'Foxconn' of Patent Offices

Suicide nets? Instead, windows have been bolted shut at the EPO.

Foxconn suicide nets
Photo credit: Gizmodo



Summary: The demise of the EPO, which emulates patent offices that are racing to the bottom, is a life-threatening employer which now jeopardises its very existence

THE EPO under Battistelli has already seen nearly seven suicides. Some workers would rather be dead than alive, seeing themselves subjected to Chinese trials (politics or a 'royal' decree as arbiter), Chinese human rights, Chinese 'justice' (on patents), and SIPO examination standards.



"Some workers would rather be dead than alive, seeing themselves subjected to Chinese trials (politics or a 'royal' decree as arbiter), Chinese human rights, Chinese 'justice' (on patents), and SIPO examination standards."It's no secret that patent quality has sunk. European Patents (EPs) are nowhere near the same level of quality they've boasted about for decades. In fact, many were recently invalidated in bulk owing to intervention from outside the Office. Those were patents on life. But the push for patents on plants, as one might expect, carries on. Who's behind it? People who are trying to 'own' plants -- as ridiculous as that notion would seem to a farmer and outlandish even to aliens. As IP Watch put it earlier today: "A new “position paper” by a plant breeders industry group revives the argument that plant-related inventions should be patentable. New plant breeding techniques modifying the plant genome are not essentially biological processes, thus should be patentable, the paper says. The group also calls for a worldwide harmonised research exemption on plant variety rights and patents for the purpose of improving the invention."

EPs on genome made their debut in the EPO this year. Even the USPTO had rejected such patents. Would these be invalidated en masse some time in the next year or two? We don't know. But this, among other things, is a symptom of the worrying quality of EPs. Many EPs are still being granted on software -- a subject we shall deal with separately -- even though such patents are banned almost everywhere but China.

China?

"Many EPs are still being granted on software -- a subject we shall deal with separately -- even though such patents are banned almost everywhere but China."Yes, China.

I have nothing against China, but their patent system is trouble. It's also a recipe for disaster. Last year alone the number of patent applications there exceeded one million. It may sound like a joke, but it's not. That's an order of magnitude more than countries of the same size. So do such patents represent a surge/boom for innovation in China? Of course not. It's just a patent gold rush that is being encouraged by the government as a matter of policy.

The United States, by contrast, tightens patent scope. In addition, the number of patent applications from the US (for EPs) nosedived over the past year. The EPO tries hard to hide or at least belittle this nugget of information.

"...the number of patent applications from the US (for EPs) nosedived over the past year."Earlier today the EPO wrote that "Patent Translate helps you understand patent documents from all over the world," but as even EPO insiders repeatedly explain, automated translations of technical documents don't work well. There's no 'magic' bridge for legal purposes. One cannot rely on an incomprehensible document either to study a patent or deal with legal action. I spoke to someone (earlier today) whose application for a European Patent was rejected. I told him not to worry because examiners work too fast, so inevitably mistakes are made. Sometimes applications get rejected based on formalities alone. If it carries on like that, people may stop bothering; they will stop even applying. Patent applications are down at the EPO (not worldwide) and not even growth from China has been enough to balance the books (it was still down year-to-year). So guess where Battistelli is flying. The EPO was proud to state (this afternoon) that Battistelli met (warning: epo.org link) the person whom he had previously met where he's a politician (in the same town in France). If the EPO is aspiring to be close to the worst patent office (in terms of scope/quality), what does that say about Battistelli's goals?

Check out the last paragraph:

China is a leading country of origin for patent applications at the EPO (6th largest country of origin), and applications from China have grown rapidly in recent years (+25% in 2016). With Huawei (no. 2) and ZTE (no.22), two Chinese companies were among the most active patent filing companies at the EPO last year.


China won't save the EPO. It will merely destroy the reputation of EPs. There has been this one news report parroting the above and it repeated the same talking point: "Applications from China at the EPO grew by 25 percent in 2016, with Chinese telecommunications company, Huawei, becoming the second most active patent filing company at the EPO last year."

Notice the wording. It's almost like a copy-paste job edited somewhat to look original. Maybe the EPO's PR team 'shipped' it over for publication -- something which journalists I've met in person told me that the EPO certainly does.

"Maybe the EPO's PR team 'shipped' it over for publication -- something which journalists I've met in person told me that the EPO certainly does."If this is all that Battistelli has to brag about, then the EPO is in serious trouble. He recently reduced fees and the Office changed methods of payment, probably to offset the declining 'demand' for EPs. Earlier today the EPO wrote: "Patent fee payment methods will change on 1 Dec 2017."

That's next week. We remind readers that if it seems like there's an increase in applications (and that's a big if), one must account for decrease in fees. When granting soars by about 40% and applications decline in the same period of time, well... any scientist can tell that it spells doom. So-called 'production' vastly outpaces 'demand'. The good, experienced examiners (i.e. scientists) won't relocate to Munich (with family that doesn't speak German) to work for an Office on a short-term contract and writings on the wall that say "layoffs coming".

"When granting soars by about 40% and applications decline in the same period of time, well... any scientist can tell that it spells doom."We are not exaggerating when we say that the EPO faces a mortal danger. Insiders say so too.

Recent articles about SUEPO and sources closest to SUEPO used the following lemon analogy: “One thing is sure, Campinos will find a problematic legacy which no doubt will hinder progress—a squeezed lemon does not produce much.”

Also among the quotes: “With a precarious future, there will be a temptation to squirrel away as much cash as possible for the post-EPO life. Some will do so honourably, others perhaps less so. Employees have access to highly confidential, sensitive industrial secrets worth hundreds of millions of euro.”

Among the more recent quotes, the product pressure is “sabotaging the arrival of Campinos since it will be hard for Campinos to maintain such extravagant production pressure in the future”.

"We are not exaggerating when we say that the EPO faces a mortal danger."The SUEPO memo is quoted as saying: “The permanent and excessive work pressure and unreachable targets are likely to cause staff members to become sick and exhausted. That is not a good place to be. [...] First of all, illness is always unpleasant. But also, the callous way with which the office treats sick colleagues is not conducive to reduction of the stress levels, and can lock the sick colleagues in a vicious circle.”

Regarding quality, this latter article (cited by SUEPO right now) says "the 15,000-product increase was a problem as it comes suddenly at the end of the year, comes years after a steady increase and puts patent quantity before quality."

Recent Techrights' Posts

Links 25/07/2025: NOAA Cuts Endanger Lives, "Europe's Self Inflicted Cloud Crisis"
Links for the day
YouTube is a Spamfarm, Slopfarm, and Clickfarm (a Lot of Numbers There Are Fake)
Those who don't fake look unpopular and unimportant
 
Links 25/07/2025: Slop Blunders and China Has Code of Conduct for Lawmakers in HK
Links for the day
Gemini Links 25/07/2025: Some Books and Babies and Capital
Links for the day
They Try to Lecture Us on Ethics
They even removed "master" from Microsoft GitHub
The Future of the Web is One Rendering Engine or 'Flavours' of Chrome
The future of the Web does not look bright at all
Best Sites Are Not Optimised for Any Browser, They Work Equally Well With All of Them
Red Hat (IBM) is making rubbish sites
We Don't Do JavaScript and Pages Are Small
Thankfully Gemini Protocol has nothing like JavaScript
'Tech' is Not Technology
Some people use terms like 'Old Tech'
IBM's Debt Rose by Almost 10 Billion Dollars in the Past 6 Months Alone
The "hey hi" circus is coming to an end
Yes, Master
Gaslighting by actual racists
Microsoft Bribes and Buys Politicians to Tell Europe What to Do About Free Software (Which It's Attacking)
Microsoft: we speak for the thing that we are attacking! Follow the money...
Making Backups Quickly and Reliably
Backups are imperative, more so in an age of uncertainty, unpredictable weather, and worsening standards (quality of products going down while prices go up)
Techrights Investigation: Estimating the Point in Time LinuxIac Turned Into LLM Slop (Part of the Time)
Bobby Borisov got lazy
10th Month, Ten Weeks From Now, at Ten AM
In Wentworth Institute of Technology in Boston
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, July 24, 2025
IRC logs for Thursday, July 24, 2025
A Nadella Memo Distracts From Microsoft's Cheapening Of the Workforce
Right now the "MSM" (mainstream media) is flooded/overwhelmed by garbage pieces that relay lies for Nadella
Vanishing Faces of GNU/Linux
Free software projects do not depend on any one person or company to still exist
Microsoft Says It Lost 400 Million Windows Users, Now It's Waiting for GNU/Linux to Stop Booting on 'Old' PCs
When it comes to Windows, Microsoft is fully aware of the issue and statements it made earlier this summer suggest it lost 400 million Windows users
Slopwatch: LinuxTechLab, linuxsecurity.com, LinuxIac, and More
Also: The Register's Microsoft agenda (new editor)
Gemini Links 25/07/2025: Gemtext Aware Titan Editor and Gemini Protocol Comeback
Links for the day
Links 24/07/2025: Convicted Felon Quits UNESCO, "Vibe Coding Goes Wrong", and Signalgate Gets Worse
Links for the day
Gemini Links 24/07/2025: Forgejo Woes and Smolnet Directory Week
Links for the day
Misinformation is Not Intelligence
It's low-grade plagiarism and it fails to show any signs of intelligence
Links 24/07/2025: Storage Tapes Still Kicking, Windows TCO 'on Steroids' (Microsoft-Induced Catastrophes)
Links for the day
Bobby Borisov (LinuxIac) Has Apparently Begun Experimenting With LLM Slop, So We Cannot Trust LinuxIac Anymore
So did LinuxIac become a slopfarm? Maybe not yet, but it's getting there
Informa TechTarget's ITProToday is Becoming a Slopfarm Generated by Microsoft Chatbots
Busted.
'Tech' Gimmicks Are for Advertising, Not for Usability
In the case of Microsoft, they latched onto slop
BetaNews Sacked Brian Fagioli and Deleted His Comments, But He Still Tries to Use the "BetaNews" Brand for Self-Affirmation
Fagioli takes the work of other people
[Meme] Hard to Be a Better Person?
Sooner or later they'll realise that for each pound I spend they need to spend about 1,000 times more
The LLM Con Artists Are Highly Destructive
Who will ever be held accountable for this scam?
Too Bribed by Microsoft to Move to Free Software?
Microsoft lies and Microsoft bribery (in politics)
New US Editor for The Register is a Microsoft Booster
"Avram Piltch has served as US editor for The Register since July 2025."
Microsoft Hiring European Politicians is Another Form of Bribery; There Should be a European Investigation
When Microsoft bribed people in Europe for OOXML (there's no denying this!) a European government delegate said that Microsoft operated like a cult
Reda Demanded That FSF Removes Its Founder, Now Reda Works Directly for Microsoft
A sellout and a traitor, first working for GAFAM, now Microsoft
PCLinuxOS is Raising Money to Support Development After Fire Incident at the Host
PCLinuxOS has not had announcements lately
Speed of the Site Should be Better Now
The "bot attacks" impact the speed of the sister site too
Getting More From AnalogNowhere
Recently we used many images from AnalogNowhere
Microsoft, Microsofters and 'Secure' Boot Shills Already Storming the LWN Report About Expiring Certificate, Shooting the Messenger
LWN has clearly stuck a nerve
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, July 23, 2025
IRC logs for Wednesday, July 23, 2025
Disable "Secure" Boot Today (the Only Better Time to Do So Was Yesterday)
Don't trust anything Red Hat tells you about security
Links 23/07/2025: Windows Killed Company After 150+ Years, US Government Mimics Russia's Attacks on the Media
Links for the day
Freedom Generally Wins at the End, History Shows (But It's Constantly Attacked, Too)
At the moment people realise "Linux" (e.g. Android) isn't enough to guarantee any freedoms
Over 3 Months Later Brett Wilson LLP Still Unable to Recruit a Media Lawyer?
"Immediate start", but not found... still unfilled
“Inhumane” and “Disgusting” Mass Layoff Execution, According to Microsoft Staff
The workers are looking for other places to work
The Free Software Foundation (FSF) Has a New Slogan for Its 40th Anniversary
The freedoms are what's most important
Microsoft is Trying to "Pull a Nokia" on GNU/Linux as Desktop/Laptop Platform
We all remember that rather well, don't we?
LLM Slopfarms gbhackers.com, "Cyber Press" and CyberSecurityNews Are Drowning Google News (and Shame on Google for Feeding and Facilitating Them)
All are run by the same people
Links 23/07/2025: Droplets GUI Patent Monopoly Challenge, Nokia Leverages Illegal Patent Court Against Rivals
Links for the day
Gemini Links 23/07/2025: Community in Geminispace and Challenges With Old Computers
Links for the day
Links 23/07/2025: Slop Patents Tackled, Slop Copyright Misuses Tackled by Politicians
Links for the day
Our Three Lawsuits Against Microsofters Are About to Become a Lot More Relevant to GNU/Linux
The Master will easily understand why Garrett has been attacking me since 2012
Links 23/07/2025: Retreating From Transparency on Jeffrey Epstein, We No Longer Have Press Freedom
Links for the day
Gemini Links 23/07/2025: Piano and Food
Links for the day
New and Old
On Ageism in Tech
Slop Is Not Intelligence and It Does Not Enhance Productivity
Like voice dictation, which cannot tell the difference between "sheet" and "shit"
EPO Crimes Are Spreading to the British Court System
Society is now paying the price for failing to tackle crimes at the EPO
It's Time to Dump SharePoint and Here's What to Use Instead
Nextcloud, ownCloud, Bookstack, MediaWiki, and MediaGoblin
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, July 22, 2025
IRC logs for Tuesday, July 22, 2025
Brett Wilson LLP Has Gone Silent
Sometimes silence says more than nothing at all
Slopwatch: LinuxSecurity, Planet Ubuntu, and LinuxTechLab
some slopfarms show no remorse and they don't value their reputation at all
Links 23/07/2025: Book Bans, Storms, and Kangaroo Court for Patents Commits More Unlawful Acts of Overreach
Links for the day