Category Regional Policy

USPTO Cautious In Interpretation Of Supreme Court Ruling On Patents

By Sarah Lai Stirland for Intellectual Property Watch
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued a preliminary memorandum that instructed its examiners to interpret a landmark Supreme Court ruling conservatively - even as the wider community in the field of US patent law expect the opinion to shake up longstanding rules that determine when an idea is too obvious to be granted a patent. The office also formed an experts' group on the issue.

Possible Qualcomm-Nokia Patent War Delayed Until August

By Tatum Anderson for Intellectual Property Watch
US technology firm Qualcomm this week raised the spectre that if Finnish mobile phone manufacturer Nokia does not comply with demands within four months, a long-running worldwide intellectual property dispute between the two companies could potentially escalate. But so far, Nokia has stated its position and shows no sign of moving.

For now, the expected patent war between Qualcomm and Nokia has been delayed. Industry observers had expected Qualcomm to bring a slew of costly suits against Nokia in April for allegedly infringing its extensive patent portfolio. A patent war would pitch two of the largest mobile technology companies in the world against each other, which could have an impact on worldwide consumers' access to mobile technology products.

Industry: Criminal Checks Needed For Tasting, Kiting, Spying

By Monika Ermert for Intellectual Property Watch International organisations should step in to prevent the “tasting,” “kiting” and “spying” related to Internet domain names, say representatives from the US telecommunications and trademark industries. These new activities are dramatically altering online…