Dugie Standeford

Dugie Standeford

  • Joined: 07/02/2009
  • Articles: 244

Year Ahead: Copyright Issues Rank High On EU To-Do List This Year

Copyright, copyright and more copyright tops Europe's intellectual property agenda for 2017. With the EU institutions mulling major reforms to copyright laws, publishers are pushing for a right to bar unauthorised copying or reuse of their content for commercial purposes, audiovisual authors for fair remuneration for use of their works on platforms like YouTube. The European Commission will begin reviewing the enforcement of IP rights as well as delving further into issues related to liability of platforms for infringement. But there are many patent issues too, including plant variety protection, patent incentives, and the ongoing unitary patent court.

EU Study Recommends FRAND Clarification, More Coordination On 5G

The rapid development of information and communication technologies, and the need for greater interconnectivity driven by the Internet of Things has created a variety of standard-essential patent (SEP) owners and implementers with different business models, and for more diverse licensing practices, the European Commission Joint Research Centre says in a new study. This has made it harder to agree on an interpretation of FRAND licensing principles, something European policymakers must clarify in order to meet key digital single market and other goals, it says.

Research Groups Seek Stronger Protections In EU Copyright Reform Proposal

European lawmakers should boost protections for researchers and educators in the European Commission proposal for a directive on copyright in the digital single market, five research organisations said today. Among other things, lawmakers and policymakers must rethink the provisions on text and data mining as well as the exception for use of works in digital and cross-border teaching, they said.

US High Court Hears Patent Case With Global Trade Implications

In a first-impression case with implications for international trade, the United States Supreme Court is set to decide whether the US supplier of a single non-infringing article used in an infringing product abroad can be held liable for worldwide damages under US patent law. The case hinges on the meaning of “substantial” and whether US law can extend beyond its borders.

ILO Decisions Said To Confirm EPO Staff Lack Fair Legal System

The International Labour Organization Administration Tribunal (ILO-AT) on 30 November set aside two European Patent Office (EPO) decisions rejecting employee challenges to various internal rules. The judgments, which sent the complaints back to the EPO on the grounds that they had not been handled by the proper authorities, highlight the lack of a “fair and functioning” legal system for EPO staff, said an employee source who asked to remain anonymous.

UK Decision To Ratify EU Patent Court Leaves Key Questions Hanging

The United Kingdom government is preparing to ratify the Unified Patent Court Agreement, it said on 28 November. The move took the patent community by surprise but failed to relieve uncertainty about what will happen when the UK finally Brexits the EU, according to patent attorneys in the UK.

Online Enforcement Index Aims To Aid Patent Filing Decisions

Part of the decision whether to file a patent in a particular country rests on how likely it is the patent can be effectively enforced, but until recently the information needed to answer that question was mostly anecdotal, Nikolaos Papageorgiadis, University of Liverpool Management School (UK) international business lecturer, said at a webinar. To remedy that, he and Cranfield School of Management Economic Policy, Sustainability and Performance Reader Konstantinos Alexiou created the Index Of Patent Systems Strength, which ranks the effectiveness and efficiency of the patent systems of 49 countries.

Union Calls “Flash Demo” After EPO Fires Another Union Representative

The Staff Union of the European Patent Office (SUEPO) called a 7 November “flash” demonstration in Munich after the office fired Laurent Prunier, SUEPO secretary in The Hague. The move dismayed employees encouraged after the Administrative Council (AC), made up of the office's member states, last month pressured President Benoît Battistelli into backing off from two unpopular proposals for investigating and disciplining staff.

Trump Silence On IP Policy Leaves Rights Owners Baffled

While US Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton has published detailed positions on intellectual property, technology transfer and trade, Republican candidate Donald Trump has limited his comments to trade reform and alleged Chinese IP theft. The policy vacuum has left the IP community not only uncertain of Trump's intentions but unable even to find the right people to ask, one IP attorney said. [Note: story updated with a comment about IP made by Trump]

EPO Staff Welcome Withdrawal Of Unpopular Disciplinary Proposals

Pressure from staff and now from members of the European Patent Office governing body has forced EPO President Benoît Battistelli to withdraw controversial proposals for disciplining and investigating employees, the Staff Union of the EPO (SUEPO) said on 17 October. The action was welcomed but the situation is far from resolved, staff members say.