"Here come the politicians with their "little guy" propaganda."But anyway, a patent office run by politicians and so-called 'public servants' would inevitably start to behave like nothing but a political entity, complete with oaths, nepotism and PR stunts intended to divert attention away (from profound scandals).
The other day the EPO tweeted: "Every fifth application at the EPO is filed by an SME."
Oh, the precious, poor little "SMEs"...
Here come the politicians with their "little guy" propaganda.
"In other words," I responded to them, "80% of patents likely go to large monopolists looking to shield a monopoly (also: many of these SMEs are not European)..."
It doesn't sound as good when framed in this way, does it? But that's just what's happening.
It's also noteworthy that the EPO pushed this political crap on a weekend (Saturday, yesterday), conflating patenting with science -- as does the EU. The EPO and EU politicians now cooperate in their propaganda. This is an EU/EC Twitter account.
"That's like the politician Battistelli constantly writing about terror attacks and earthquakes etc. in the "news" section of the EPO. He seems to think the EPO is some sort of political office or a political party like the corrupt French party he's associated with (his boss there was arrested for corruption)."But here's the main rub.
The EPO is supposed to be about science, not politics. So what's the deal with this 'news' item (warning: epo.org link), published only days ago and accompanied by this tweet: "The EPO wishes to express its deepest sympathy for the people of Italy and the lives lost to Covid-19, their loss is felt by us all. As an act of solidarity in these difficult times, the Office lowered the Italian and EPO flags at its sites in Munich and the Hague."
That's like the politician Battistelli constantly writing about terror attacks and earthquakes etc. in the "news" section of the EPO. He seems to think the EPO is some sort of political office or a political party like the corrupt French party he's associated with (his boss there was arrested for corruption).
Why only Italy, EPO? France is the one losing the most people at the moment; there are record-breaking death tolls in France, for several days in a row. Italy is only fourth for casualties now (daily deaths), so the EPO's PR ploy did not age well. What about Spain, France, UK, US...?
"Who will oversee the budget, which is millions of euros for just a few hours of ceremony? This is, once again, a recipe for major corruption like embezzlement."I also asked the EPO: "What about Spain?" For several days in a row more Spaniards died from COVID-19 (than Italians). No sympathy from the UPC because they oppose UPC in Spain? Is this what the EPO politicians had in mind? Their 'pet project' is dead (UPC going nowhere) and about a week later they use the "news" section of the EPO to suck up to Italians. With all due respect to Italians, isn't it beyond the EPO's scope to issue such statements in the "news" section? Cheap PR stunts? Politics in a patent office? This shows that Campinos, son of a politician, is just another politician like Battistelli. That helps explains unprecedented levels of corruption, which also implicate the EU (e.g. Campinos bringing all his mates from EUIPO).
Speaking of political stunts, which somehow neglect the death toll in France, guess where the next EIA will go. Got it? France again. Sort of. Monaco. In the EPO's own words: "The European #InventorAward 2020 will be postponed until 2021. Our utmost priority is the health of our finalists, guests and staff in the current situation caused by the Coronavirus. The event will take place in June 2021 in Monaco."
How many times in the past decade was EIA held in France (yes, we know about the special sovereignty of Monaco)? Did the Corsican Battistelli relocate from Paris to Monaco or something? Who will oversee the budget, which is millions of euros for just a few hours of ceremony? This is, once again, a recipe for major corruption like embezzlement.
We've meanwhile noticed that EPOPIC is still scheduled to go ahead this year (3-5 November 2020 in Tallinn, Estonia) (warning: epo.org link)
"Remember that this is the same EPO that rewarded a massive fraud whose patents are now used against cures for COVID-19, not to mention the litigation over ventilators."The EPO is not a technical workplace these days; it's a political institution immune from oversight and the Rule of Law. The politicians are unaccountable. So the colossal corruption is perhaps predictable. If there's no punishment, what's to prevent the crime taking place?
Remember that this is the same EPO that rewarded a massive fraud whose patents are now used against cures for COVID-19, not to mention the litigation over ventilators. A French company shared the legal documents. If the EPO wants to help Europe at this time, it will just suspend operations for a few months (it can afford to pay staff on leave). This isn't the time -- nor the place -- to glorify those monopolies which basically harm (or slow down) research for cures, vaccinations and various other mitigations, e.g. methods of helping the ill breathe. Three days ago the EPO published this in the "news" section: (warning: epo.org link)
The EPO's Standing Advisory Committee (SACEPO) earlier this week held its user consultation meeting for the first time by video conference (ViCo). The spring meeting of the SACEPO Working Party on Rules on 31 March looked at measures to further facilitate the use of ViCo in oral proceedings in examination and opposition. In view of current travel restrictions due to the Covid-19 outbreak, user representatives recognised that ViCo contributes to a more efficient and sustainable European patent system.