Patentology Soundbytes

"All the news (and views) that's fit to link!"

'Soundbytes' are even more brief than 'Newsbytes'.  No original commentary, just links to other news items, articles and publications that have come to our attention.

In this issue:

1. Research Corp. Technologies v. Microsoft Corp.
2. Progress on a single 'pan-European' patent?
3. Intellectual Ventures lashes out.
4. PwC's annual US Patent Litigation Study.

...and more...

Patentology Soundbytes - we trawl the Web, so you don't have to!

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The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit adopts a more generous approach to patentability of software inventions in Research Corp. Technologies v. Microsoft Corp. Read about it...

1. on the Patently-O blog.
2. at Patentmath.

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Hopes for a single widely-enforceable (almost) 'pan-European' patent seem to be looking up, as frustrated nations look to cut the recalcitrant Spain and Italy out of the process.  Read about it...

1. on the IP Kat blog.
2. at IAM Magazine.

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It seems that the sheep's clothing may have come off, as patent-holding and invention development company Intellectual Ventures does what it said it would not do, and sues a slew of companies over patents relating to software security, DRAM/Flash memory and Field-Programmable Gate Arrays.  Read about it absolutely everywhere, but in particular...

1. on the Patently-O blog.
2. at IP Watchdog.
3. on the 271 Patent Blog.
4. at IAM Magazine.
5. at Weiskopf's Intellectual Property Law Blog.
6. in the New York Times Bits blog.

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PwC's annual US Patent Litigation Study is out now, and is a veritable treasure-trove of fascinating (and not-so-fascinating) facts and stats.  Get the report for yourself, and read the perspectives...

1. on the 271 Patent Blog.
2. at IAM Magazine.

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Other publications that caught our attention this week:

1. As Aventis Pharma's anti-cancer drug Taxotere comes off patent in Europe, a French court was required to look at the extent to which 'springboarding' by generic competitors is permissible - at the Kluwer Patent Blog.
2. Two academics (one biotech, one legal) have filed an amicus curiae ('friend of the court') brief opposing the arguments of the ACLU and PubPat against 'gene patents' - at the Patent Docs blog.
3. The December issue of the PCT Newsletter is out.  No major events, but we were interested by the 'Practical Advice' article on using the Digital Access Service (DAS) as a mechanism for furnishing the International Bureau with priority documents.

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Before You Go…

Thank you for reading this article to the end – I hope you enjoyed it, and found it useful.  Almost every article I post here takes a few hours of my time to research and write, and I have never felt the need to ask for anything in return.

But now – for the first, and perhaps only, time – I am asking for a favour.  If you are a patent attorney, examiner, or other professional who is experienced in reading and interpreting patent claims, I could really use your help with my PhD research.  My project involves applying artificial intelligence to analyse patent claim scope systematically, with the goal of better understanding how different legal and regulatory choices influence the boundaries of patent protection.  But I need data to train my models, and that is where you can potentially assist me.  If every qualified person who reads this request could spare just a couple of hours over the next few weeks, I could gather all the data I need.

The task itself is straightforward and web-based – I am asking participants to compare pairs of patent claims and evaluate their relative scope, using an online application that I have designed and implemented over the past few months.  No special knowledge is required beyond the ability to read and understand patent claims in technical fields with which you are familiar.  You might even find it to be fun!

There is more information on the project website, at claimscopeproject.net.  In particular, you can read:

1. a detailed description of the study, its goals and benefits; and
2. instructions for the use of the online claim comparison application.

Thank you for considering this request!

Mark Summerfield

Tags: News