Archive for September, 2004
Article on use of Bayh-Dole March-In rights to control the price of pharmaceuticals
Link: Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN) has a recent article (September 14, 2004) on the attempts by consumer groups to use the Bayh-Dole Act to control drug prices. The article provides background and summary information on the Act, and details recent attempts by Essential Inventions to get NIH to exercise march-in rights to [...]
New USPTO fee schedule: Hurry up to save $20 (or $10)
Link: The new fee schdule goes into effect on Friday, October 1, 2004. You can save $20 ($10 for small entity) by filing your patent application on Thursday.
Law firm websites…and blawgs
If you’re a lawyer with a website (or a lawyer who wants a website) and haven’t read the recent Andy Havens column on LLRX, you should. Now. It includes an interview with Kevin O’Keefe of lexBlog fame.
As I read the article, I kept thinking of that famous one-liner fromThe Graduate. “just one [...]
Patent expiring? Contact your Congressman
Representative Joe Baca (CA) recently introduced H.R. 5036 to extend the term of patent RE 38,014 that apparently includes claims that read on the MagLite flashlight.
According to a press release on Mr. Baca’s web site, the bill
“…protects the investment of Mag Instrument’s patent…and protects workers in the Inland Empire….If this patent expires, the likely outcome [...]
WSJ article on INDUCE Act
Link (subscription required): Yesterday’s Wall Street Journal ran an article (Antipiracy Bill Divides
Studios and Tech Companies, page B1) about the controversial INDUCE Act. The article delineates some of the parties on the for and against sides of the bill.
Hong Kong: “I pledge not to violate the intellectual property rights of others….”
Link: China is on a huge campaign to either curb piracy or to convince the world that its trying to do so. The latest effort is a series of concerts, called the “I pledge” concerts, in which members (concert-goers?) pledge “that they will not buy pirated and counterfeit goods, and respect the intellectual [...]
Free patent .pdfs from your XP desktop
I recently installed the pat2pdf script on my laptop. The script allows me to download free US patent .pdf’s right from my XP desktop. Again. Thanks go to Canadian attorney Peter Eliopoulos for documenting the nuts and bolts of getting the script to run on XP.
Peter’s install notes are here.
Nipper added some [...]
Rundown of Amicus briefs filed in rehearing of Phillips v. AWH
Link: The Patently Obvious Blog (Dennis Crouch) has posted an excellent rundown of several amicus briefs filed in the Federal Circuit’s rehearing of Phillips v. AWH.
The Federal Circuit is rehearing the appeal, en banc, in Phillips to resolve issues regarding claim construction and the proper use of dictionaries.
The specific questions on which amicus briefs [...]
PCT Assembly 33rd Session kicks off today
The 33rd session (19th extraordinary session) of the International Patent Cooperation Union (PCT Union) starts today. Agenda items include reform of the PCT, status report on PCT information systems, and a proposed readjustment of the international filing fee.
Documents prepared by the International Bureau for the Assembly are available here.
Trademark licensing: New bill introduced in Senate aims to address federal appellate decision on “no challenge” provisions
Senators Larry E. Craig (ID) and Dick Durbin (IL) introduced S.2796 as a bill to clarify that service marks, collective marks, and certification marks are entitled to the same protections, rights, and privileges of trademarks. The bill makes simple amendments to the Lanham Act to accomplish its goal (see text of the bill here [...]
