Bonum Certa Men Certa

Team UPC Has Been Reduced to Rubble and Misinformation

Countries with a dozen new patents (more than a thousand times less than Germany) touted as 'progress'

Alexander Ramsay, Bristows, and the UPC gold rush



Summary: A roundup of the latest falsehoods about the Unified Patent Court (UPC) and those who are peddling such falsehoods for personal gain

THIS won't be the first time that we point out misinformation about the UPC. We have been doing that for nearly a decade (even before "UPC" was known as UPC). Today's post packs in it several new examples. We'll keep it as short and concise as possible. We can soon just forget about the UPC (altogether). It will be left in the ashtray of history.



IAM



"We can soon just forget about the UPC (altogether)."The PR firm of the EPO had paid IAM to promote the UPC. This wasn't even a secret. IAM disclosed that in its Web site. We got that. It's a marriage of convenience and the lobbying is paid for. That IAM spread false rumours about the UPC in Spain last year (repeatedly in fact) is not OK. Why not? Because it constitutes what many people refer to as "fake news" nowadays. Never mind the ethical issues associated with lobbying...

Yesterday IAM wrote: "The Spanish government has reiterated that it will not support Spain's membership of the UPC. Linguistically and economically - it says - the system would disadvantage Spanish SMEs. But how many Spanish SMEs have any interest in patents?"

The government is correct. IAM is wrong. SMEs would be the targets of litigation. That's why the UPC is a threat to them. And it doesn't offer them any benefits as very few even operate outside Spain anyway...

"The PR firm of the EPO had paid IAM to promote the UPC. This wasn't even a secret."I responded to IAM by saying that patent extremists, who make a living out of patent system growth (more monopolies irrespective of economic theories/evidence), will always choose to "not understand" this. IAM carried on: "Spain - a country of 46 million people and the EU's 5th largest economy - saw a 20% decline in patent applications last year, from an already pitifully low 2,849 to 2,285. Does that tell us more about Spain or the importance of patents?"

So IAM is now bashing Spain over the number of patents, conveniently missing the point that patents are a rich countries' game (protectionism with cost barriers).

IAM being IAM, it will carry on pushing the UPC agenda while bashing those who stand in the way or distorting their views. With EPO money in its purse, maybe that's just "good business sense"...

Bristows LLP



The UPC is stuck, so Bristows nowadays champions "alternative facts". That says a lot about the lack of integrity of Bristows.

It Looks like Bristows staff is once again putting a mask on ("Kluwer Patent blogger") for UPC lobbying. Watch this post from yesterday and compare it to another (from the same day) by Andrew Bowler. He wants us to believe that Latvia -- with barely any EPs (16 in 2016 and 8 in 2015) -- matters to UPC and can revive it. "Latvia is the 15th country to ratify," they say, and "[t]he UK is expected to ratify in the upcoming months."

"Very few horses are left in this race; Bristows is almost on its own now."That's a lie. Jo Johnson left, but they did not even mention it (ever). There's no indication that ratification is imminent. Bristows seems to have already fabricated statements to that effect.

Notice what they say at the very end: "Latvia has not yet consented to the provisional application of the UPCA or signed the UPC’s Protocol on Privileges and Immunities."

It does not mention the UK or Germany (how convenient). "It may be worthwhile awaiting the decision of the German Constitutional Court after all," a UPC booster noted. He too knows that therein (not in Latvia) lies the fate. We might have to wait another 2 years now (for a decision). In the meantime the world forgets about the UPC fairytale (except the UPC lobby) and might not be aware that the UPC push even exists. Very few horses are left in this race; Bristows is almost on its own now.

Support for UPC is Waning



According to JUVE's editor: "Less to read for German Constitutional Court than expected. According to the Court these institutions have submitted opinions on the UPC case: German Government, EPOorg, EPLIT, EPLAW, BRAK, DAV, und GRUR"

"We expected to see a lot more submissions in support of UPC ratification."And in German: "Nicht viel, aber wenigstens eine kleine Information. Laut BVerfG haben diese Institutionen eine Stellungnahme zur UPC-Beschwerde eingereicht: Bundesregierung, @EPOorg, BRAK, DAV, EPLIT, EPLAW und GRUR. Weniger zu lesen für Karlsruhe als gedacht: 7 statt 27 Gutachten"

We expected to see a lot more submissions in support of UPC ratifications. The above (at least to us) suggests that fewer bodies with a UPC stake even bothered. It's like they already gave up.

Recent Techrights' Posts

Why We Publish Information About the SLAPPs (But Not About the Legal Process), an Abuse of Process by Americans Trying to Silence Critics of Their Employer, Microsoft
It doesn't take thousands of pages to explain something simple
 
The Register MS Says "AI Web Crawlers Are Destroying Websites", So Why Does The Register MS Help 'AI' Companies? (Spoiler: Money)
People need to call out The Register MS on its hypocrisy
Slopfarms Already Peaked, They Will Die When Slop Companies Run Out of Money to Borrow
slopfarms will lack an actual "engine"
Links 02/09/2025: Attacks on Unions, Microsoft TCO, and DDoSing a Growing Problem
Links for the day
Internet Relay Chat Didn't Fall Off a Cliff
IRC will turn 40 in less than 3 years from now
The UEFI 9/11 - Part V - This is Not a Drill (Disable "SecureBoot" Now)
A "9/11" Coming
There's No Obligation to Speak to Anybody
The very fact that "bkuhn" is till spending time in social control media says a lot about his poor judgment
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Monday, September 01, 2025
IRC logs for Monday, September 01, 2025
Microsoft Trying to Force People to Resign (Amid Mass Layoffs) a Strategy That Takes Its Toll
Microsoft seems to be circling down the drain and the "final flush" will be the moment the "hey hi" (AI) bubble implodes completely
Google Simply Cannot Be Trusted
Only fools would trust GAFAM
Admission That a Third Party (or Parties) Funds the SLAPPs Against Techrights
This can end up costing them over a million dollars
Modifying and Writing One's Own Computer Programs is Not a Crime (or: Google Proves That Stallman Was Right)
We're generally gratified to see so many positive mentions of him
Why We Stopped Publishing Videos (for Now)
We'll probably get back to videos one day, but it's hard to say when or to what extent
What Animal Rights Activism Teaches Us About Sympathy and Focus
It's possible to believe that the planet is warming, that we must do something about it, and still eat eggs and butter
When You Turn Web Sites About Tech Into Political Sites
A lot of people fall into the trap of catering only for particular groups
Gemini Links 02/09/2025: ROOPHLOCH 2025 and Lagrange 1.19 Released
Links for the day
Gemini Links 01/09/2025: News Corp. WSJ and A Month With NixOS
Links for the day
“Sideloading” Never Killed Anybody
There are many online discussions this week about the misnomer "sideloading"
Slopwatch: Google News as FUD Vector Against Linux and Plagiarism Enhancer, Serial Slopper (SS) Uses LLMs to Googlebomb "Linux"
Slop destroys the Web not just by screwing with search engines and helping plagiarists. It's also responsible for de facto DDoS attacks...
Links 01/09/2025: "Attacks on Science" and China's "Soft Power" Grows
Links for the day
Links 01/09/2025: Fresh Backlash Against Slop and "Norway’s Electricity Crisis is About to Hit Britain"
Links for the day
Writing and Coding Isn't Always Enough
Last year we had to assume a role we didn't have before: litigants
Links 01/09/2025: Catching Up (Mostly via Deutsche Welle), "Windows TCO" Effect in UK
Links for the day
Gemini Links 01/09/2025: Linguistic Barriers and "Web 1.0 Hosting"
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Sunday, August 31, 2025
IRC logs for Sunday, August 31, 2025
Autumn Has Come
Autumn should be exciting in all sorts of ways; it'll also mark our anniversary
The UEFI 9/11 - Part IV - External Interference
They all seem to be playing a role in crushing Software Freedom and self-determination for users
Links 31/08/2025: Baggage Claim Scams, an Insurrectionist’s War on Culture, and a Sudden Robotics Hype
Links for the day
Gemini Links 31/08/2025: Reviewing Netsurf and Slightly Less Historic Ada Design
Links for the day
IBM Has Taken Control of GNOME
Don't expect a successor to be found any time soon
Links 31/08/2025: Google Gmail Data Breach and LF Puff Pieces for Pay
Links for the day
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Saturday, August 30, 2025
IRC logs for Saturday, August 30, 2025
This is What Google News Has Become
Moments ago