Patent Law

Is Obama's Patent Reform Hurting American Small Businesses

Daniel B. Ravicher | Posted 05.10.2012

Read More: Patent, Patent Reform, Patent Law, Patents, Obama Patent Reform, Patent Office, Small Business News

While I would never -- and have never -- advocated for abolishing the patent system, because that would be throwing the baby out with the bath water, we do need to fix our patent system so that it rewards innovation, not manipulation.

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The Patent Pollution Problem: Its Causes, Effects and Solutions

Daniel B. Ravicher | Posted 05.01.2012

Read More: Law, Technology, Patent, Patent Reform, Patent Law, Patents, Video, Technology News

it is critically important to the success of our patent system that it maintain high patent quality and ensures only deserving patents are issued. Unfortunately, the American patent system today is suffering from extremely low patent quality.

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Could State Transportation Agencies Accused of Patent Infringement Use Constitution as Defense?

Daniel B. Ravicher | Posted 04.18.2012

Read More: Patent, Subway, Public Transportation, Patent Law, Patents, Technology News

There has been much reporting lately of a small patent holding company named Arrivalstar accusing public transit authorities of patent infringement if they provide commuters with real time information about train, bus or subway schedules.

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I Hope Yahoo Crushes Facebook in Its Patent Suit

Mark Cuban | Posted 05.13.2012

Read More: Patent Law, Yahoo Facebook Lawsuit, Facebook Lawsuit, Facebook Yahoo Patents, Yahoo Facebook Patents, Yahoo Patents, Facebook, Intellectual Property, Yahoo, Yahoo Sues Facebook, Technology News

When I read that Yahoo was suing Facebook my immediate reaction was disdain. As I thought more about it, I came to realize that this case could be the watershed moment that causes enough people to recognize just how horrific our patent law is.

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The Patent Condundrum -- For Startups

Steve Rosenbaum | Posted 04.27.2012

Read More: Google, Fred Wilson, Apple, Microsoft, Adobe, Facebook, Patent, Steven Rosenbaum, Patent Law, Software Patents, Patent Reform, Technology News

Within the startup world, patents are seen as anti-competitive force that stifles innovation. We're in a place where we need to walk a tightrope between the world of predatory patent prosecution and the need to promote one's invention with current patent law.

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The Jefferson Innovation Summit: Business Leaders Brainstorm A New Era Of American Creativity

HuffingtonPost.com | Alexander Eichler | Posted 12.14.2011

Read More: American Innovation, Education, Jefferson Innovation Summit, The Social Network, Great Recession, Darden School of Business, Immigration, Innovation, Economic Recovery, Thomas Jefferson, Education Reform, Innovation Economy, University of Virginia, Patents, Patent Law, Business News

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- No one knows where good ideas come from. In some cases, the answer may simply be to throw a bunch of brains together in a room...

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Obama Signs Major Patent Reform Law

AP | Posted 11.16.2011

Read More: Inventors, Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, President Barack Obama, Patent Reform Act, America Invents Act, Inventions, Barack Obama 2012, Barack Obama, Patent Law, Patents, Patent Reform, Politics News

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama will sign the America Invents Act on Friday, the first significant change in patent law since 1952. The presiden...

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Google/Android Patent Wars Highlight Need for Compulsory Licensing of Patents

James Love | Posted 10.15.2011

Read More: Google, Google Motorola Mobility, Google Android, Android, Patent Reform, Patent Law, Patents, Technology News

The romantic notion of an individual inventor is not appropriate for industries like the computer, software or mobile phone markets, where collaboration and adherence to standards are key to success.

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Google Buys Rat Poison

Jeff Jarvis | Posted 10.15.2011

Read More: Google, Google Motorola Mobility, Patent, Patent Reform, Patent Law, Patents, Technology News

The Google/Motorola deal is lawyer repellent. Or rat poison, if you prefer. It is a tragic and wasteful byproduct of our screwed-up patent system. Nevertheless, this is good for Google and Android and its ecosystem.

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The Age of Disablement

Brian Kahin | Posted 10.12.2011

Read More: Patent Law, European Patent Fund, Microsoft Patents, Google Patents, Technology Patents, RIM Patents, Patent Disputes, French Brevets, Business News

Prices are being paid for the power to block others from using technology they have developed independently. Too many companies are now embracing legal weapons on large-scale -- and social capital is suffering.

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Patent-Infringement Lawsuit Against Fark Settled for Zero Dollars. Also, Patent Trolls Suck...

Drew Curtis | Posted 10.11.2011

Read More: Fark.com, Fark, Patent, Patent Trolls, Patent Reform, Patent Law, Patents, Video, Technology News

A lot of you were already aware that Fark was sued by a patent troll back in January. But now it's over and I want to tell everyone what really happened: we didn't pay them a single dime.

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Mark Cuban: Solving Our Country's Patent Law Flaws

Mark Cuban | Posted 10.08.2011

Read More: Small Business, Jobs, Patent Office, Entrepreneurs, Patent-Litigation, Patent Law, Patent Trolls, Mark Cuban, Startups, Entrepreneurship, Job Creation, Small Business America, China, Patents, Patent Reform, Business News

If we had process patents or the culture of software litigation in the 1980s as we have today current technology would consist of running terminals on DEC and Wang Computers at the local library for $10 per hour and there probably would not be a world-wide web.

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Startups: Run Hard, Patent Later

John Dearborn | Posted 08.30.2011

Read More: Small Business America, Senate, Small Business, Startups, Patent Office, Entrepreneurs, Patent Attorney, Entrepreneurship, Patent Reform, Patents, Patent Law, Business News

Patents don't generate revenues, the ideas they protect do. If your idea truly is something that hasn't been thought of before, than run with it for a while before you spend time trying to secure a patent.

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House Approves Major Overhaul Of U.S. Patent System

AP | By JIM ABRAMS | Posted 08.23.2011

Read More: House of Representatives, Patent Lawyers, Congress, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Patent System Congress, Patents Nancy Pelosi, Patent Law, Patent Reform, Patents, Politics News

WASHINGTON -- The House on Thursday voted to rewrite 60-year-old patent law to give inventors a better shot of obtaining patents in a timely manner an...

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Facebook for Patents

John Bridgeland | Posted 07.06.2011

Read More: Social Media, Social Innovation, Economy, Inventions, Jobs, U.S. Constitution, Constitution, Facebook, Patent, Patents, Patent Law, Technology News

Social media is literally helping fuel revolutions for democracy, so why not a revolution in the system that protects that mainstay of democracy -- invention.

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Sweeping Changes To Patent Law Could Help Inventors

AP | JIM ABRAMS | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Patent Lawsuits, Inventions, Intellectual Property, Innovation, Patent Law Reform, Small Business America, Patent Law, Business News

WASHINGTON — The patent system hasn't changed much since 1952 when Sony was coming out with its first pocket-size transistor radio, and bar code...

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Seeds to Plant or Seeds to Patent?

Kurt Michael Friese | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Seed-Savers-Exchange, Iowa, Farming, Agriculture, Seeds, Pioneer Hybrid v. JEM Ag, Monsanto, Patent Law, Food News

In these days of global corporations writing agriculture and energy policy, it is vital that we draw a line in the soil.

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Software Patents Need to Be Abolished

Paul Kedrosky | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Bilski v. Kappos, Software Patent, Patent System, Patent Law, Business Method Patent, Business News

Far from encouraging innovation and advancement in the "useful arts," software and business method patents have become a quasi-legal poison pill.

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When the Refs Don't Make Clear Calls: The Supreme Court and the Unclear Path for Innovators

Christina Gagnier | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Supreme Court, World Cup Referees, Business-Methods-Patent, 2010 World Cup, Bilski v. Kappos, World Cup 2010, Start-Ups, Software Patents, Federal Court, Patents, Patent Law, Technology News

Not being a soccer fan myself, I cannot fully appreciate the various tweets, articles and quips on the calls made by the referees during the 2010 Worl...

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Don't Protect Patent Lying

Daniel B. Ravicher | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Schumer, Kaufman, Sessions, Patent Law, Patent Act, Leahy, Kyl, Patent, Hatch, Patents, Business News

There is no rational explanation for Senators Leahy, Sessions, Schumer, Hatch, Kyl and Kaufman's sudden rush to overturn a 150-year-old law that protects citizens against companies making false claims.

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Monsanto Squeezes Out Seed Business Competition, AP Investigation Finds

AP | CHRISTOPHER LEONARD | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Monsanto, Seeds, Seed Business, Crops, Farming, Argriculture, Anti-Turst, Justice Department, Usdoj, US Department of Justice, Genes, Genetically Modified Food, Genetically Modified Crops, Patents, Patent, Patent Law, Food, Food Politics, Business News

ST. LOUIS — Confidential contracts detailing Monsanto Co.'s business practices reveal how the world's biggest seed developer is squeezing compet...

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An Important Patent Law Precedent Approaches

Eben Moglen | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Software Patents, Patent Lawyers, Bilski v. Kappos, Patent, Software Patent Court Decision, Patent Law, Patents, Business News

Patent law cannot award ownership of facts of nature, or mere mental activities, or algorithms: the US Supreme Court has been unambiguous on that point for more than 150 years.

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Is There a Method to This Madness?

Greg Korn | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Pitney Bowes, Hp, Patent Litigation, Patent Law, Hewlett-Packard, Research in Motion, Patents, Business News

Patent litigation is about making money. There are companies who shake down accused infringers with patents that were never produced. So the companies who manufacture products must pay to save their business.

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IBM Trifecta: Files For Offshoring Patent, Offshores Jobs, Applies for Stimulus Funds

Dawn Teo | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Outsourcing to India, Outsourcing, Offshoring, Ibm, Outsourcing-to-India, Outsourcing to China, Patents, Patent Law, Business News

IBM is currently seeking $30 billion in stimulus money to create 1 million jobs. CEO Sam Palmisano even met with Obama at the White House to discuss I...

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NPEs and Abstract Patents

Brian Kahin | Posted 05.25.2011

Read More: Bilski, Enlarged Board of Appeals, US Patent System, Ftc, Abstract Patents, Software Patents, Patent Enforcement, Federal Trade Commission, Business Methods Patent, Patent Law, Intellectual Property, NPE, International Patent, EU Patents, Patent Bubble, Software Patent Court Decision, Federal Circuit in Bilski, Supreme Court, High-Tech Patents, Peter Detkin, Department of Justice, Extortion, Technology, Intellectual Ventures, Patent Law Enforcement, 1998 State Street Decision, Business News

Unfortunately, there is little transparency in today's patent system. Indeed, the patent system is beset by information failure.

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