Stated simply, Promote the Progress is about passion – my passion for patent law.
I started the site in January 2004 (with, ironically enough, this post about the European Patent Office). My personal and professional lives were going through significant change at that time, and the site quickly became an outlet that allowed me to focus my energies on this fascinating topic.
Back then, Promote the Progress was a simple blog – a reverse chronological listing of my latest writings. The site design was unremarkable and the underlying technology was constraining and less than user-friendly. The content, though, was easy and fun – I scanned the news each morning and wrote about any patent-related story that piqued my interest. Over time I started writing about the latest developments in the patent caselaw, patent reform legislation, and the regulatory and other activities of the Patent and Trademark Office. The blog was well-received by the community and opened doors for me that likely would not have opened without it.
Then, somewhere in 2005 or so, I realized that I wanted to do more than just write about the latest patent law news. The various patent reform proposals, which I wrote about extensively, made it clear to me that patent law was about to undergo significant change. Turns out, legislation stalled but caselaw and regulatory ‘reforms’ started to usher in a new era. I noticed, though, that there was a lack of tools that enabled professionals to learn about the latest information.
So I jotted down some notes for a “patent education portal” and immediately got to work. I wanted to create a full set of information resources that allowed folks to use the latest developments in their daily work. Unfortunately, I made two decisions – one technical, one not – in launching the project that, looking back, betrayed my original idea. I decided to create the site independent of Promote the Progress on a cumbersome and ill-supported content management framework. Eventually, I realized that these two decisions were crippling the project, and I killed it.
But my passion lived on. I worked behind the scenes during the majority of 2008 to program and design the new site, and finally launched the portal in November – this time, as part of the Promote the Progress brand. Today, the site embodies a significant portion of my idea for a patent education portal. Several of the tools are now live (as an example, check out the unique caselaw rss feeds, designed to help professionals quickly and efficiently review the latest caselaw). The blog lives on, but today it’s just one component of the bigger picture.
I hope you enjoy the site and its content, and welcome any comments, questions, or suggestions you have (contact information is here). I ask you to watch closely, too, because a lot of work remains – the site will continue to evolve as I bring new features online.
Media mentions and such
Books
Under your Byline – 7 steps to getting your bylined article published in the publications that matter most, by David Freedman and Paula Levis Suita (available as part of the Get Good Press series for lawyers, from Eminent Publishing Company)
Naked Conversations: How blogs are changing the way businesses talk with customers, by Robert Scoble and Shel Israel (available at Amazon)
Journals, Newspapers, and Magazines
National Law Journal – Lawmakers lag behind in patent reform – High court, PTO make strides; Congress slowed by big tech, big pharma (May 7, 2007) (an article by Marcia Coyle about the advancement of patent reform in the Courts and the Patent and Trademark Office, and the stalling of reform efforts in Congress; various JMB quotations regarding the Supreme Court’s decision in KSR v. Teleflex and the changing dynamics of patent reform legislation) (subscription required)
IP Law & Business – Newsmakers column: Carter Phillips: Winning the eBay Case (2006 Almanac) (an article by Jake Thomas about Carter Phillips, lead counsel for eBay in eBay v. MercExchange; JMB quotation regarding Federal Circuit injunctive relief law prior to eBay; not available online)
Boston Bar Journal – Supreme Court Ends Special Treatment for Patent Injunctions (an article by Howard Susser and Jerry Cohen discussing eBay v. MercExchange; citation to Promote the Progress as a resource)
LawyersUSA – U.S. Supreme Court Begins New Term (Patent cases in forthcoming 2006-2007 Supreme Court term)
IP Law 360 – House Subcommittee OKs $1.77B USPTO Funding Bill (USPTO appropriations and fees) (subscription required)
Washington Internet Daily (Congressional hearings on patent trolls, subscription required)
Law Practice (The American Bar Association’s magazine on the Business of Practicing Law) – Blog 2.0 – The Next Stage of Lawyer Blogging (the future of law blogging, written by Tom Mighell)
Dragonfire (Drexel University’s award-winning online magazine) – Possible Patent Pandemonium in a Pandemic? Avian flu poses a risk to future drug development (compulsory licensing)
Genetic Engineering News (compulsory licensing)
Business Week (patent reform legislation, subscription required)
Inc. Magazine online (patent reform legislation)
Nature Biotechnology (patent reform legislation, subscription required)
Articles
American Laywer Media’s Law.com (article on Supreme Court case eBay v. MercExchange)
American Lawyer Media’s Law.com (2005 review and top story)
