• Nokia war with Apple wages on Nokia last month filed a complaint in the US District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin claiming that Apple's iPhone and iPad infringe five of Nokia's patents. According to Nokia, the patents relate to technologies for "enhanced speech and data transmission, using positioning data in applications and innovations in antenna configurations that improve performance and save space, allowing smaller and more compact devices". In October last year, Nokia sued Apple in a US Federal District Court in Delaware for alleged infringement of 10 patents for technologies used in the iPhone. In December, Apple fired back, countersuing Nokia for claims of infringement with respect to 13 of Apple's patents. In a statement, Nokia general manager of patent licensing, Paul Melin, said: "Nokia has been the leading developer of many key technologies in mobile devices. We have taken this step to protect the results of our pioneering development and to put an end to continued unlawful use of Nokia's innovation."
•Patent leaders weigh in on gene patents at BIO The Myriad gene patent case was the highlight of the IP law sessions held at the 2010 BIO International Convention in Chicago last month. In a so-called super session featuring Eli Lilly senior vice-president and general counsel Bob Armitage, USPTO director David Kappos and WIPO director-general Francis Gurry, Kappos said that the Office has spent considerable time thinking about the Myriad case. He said that, unlike the district court, the USPTO continues to believe that a purified version of a naturally occurring organic compound should be eligible for patent protection. "The USPTO has issued tens of thousands of patents covering isolated and purified DNA," said Kappos. He added that the Office would continue to work with the biotechnology community on the issue "regardless of the outcome of the Federal Circuit appeal". The USPTO was named as a defendant in the Myriad case, but the judge dismissed the claims against the Office in his March 29 ruling.
• Kagan to replace Stevens on Supreme Court US Solicitor General Elena Kagan was named last month as President Barack Obama's nominee to replace Justice John Paul Stevens on the Supreme Court. Stevens is set to retire at the end of the Court's term in October. If confirmed by the Senate, Kagan will be the second member of the Supreme Court to be appointed by Obama. Justice Sonia Sotomayor was confirmed in August last year. Kagan has no specific IP background. She has served as a law clerk for Judge Abner Mikva of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, as dean of Harvard Law School and was confirmed as US Solicitor General in March 2009. She also served as associate White House Counsel during the Clinton administration and in private practice at Williams & Connolly, a Washington DC litigation boutique.
•Supreme Court to rule on copyright exhaustion The US Supreme Court has agreed to rule on a copyright case that asks how the so-called first sale doctrine should be applied internationally. The case could also have implications for other areas of IP such as patents. In Omega SA v Costco, Swiss luxury watch manufacturer Omega sued US discount retailer Costco saying that Costco violated Omega's copyright by selling watches emblazoned with a logo Omega had copyrighted in the US. Omega originally sold the watches to foreign distributors, who in turn sold them to a New York distributor. The New York distributor then sold the watches to Costco at favourable prices. In 2008, the Ninth Circuit reversed a district court decision, saying that the first-sale doctrine did not apply. Although the US Justice Department vigorously urged the Supreme Court to reject Costco's appeal, the Court granted certiorari in April and is expected to hear the case in the October 2010 term.
•Microsoft takes "proactive" approach to HTC Almost two months after Apple announced its lawsuits against High Tech Corp (HTC) for infringement of 20 patents, Microsoft has struck a licensing agreement with the Taiwanese company. Microsoft announced in April that the two companies have signed a patent agreement providing "broad coverage under Microsoft's patent portfolio for HTC's mobile phones running the Android mobile platform". Microsoft's corporate vice-president and deputy general counsel of intellectual property and licensing, Horacio Gutierrez, said: "[Microsoft has] built a significant patent portfolio in [the software platforms] field, and we have a responsibility to our customers, partners, and shareholders to ensure that competitors do not free ride on our innovations." He added that the company has preferred to take a "proactive approach to licensing" to solve infringement disputes, which may be seen as a criticism of Apple's decision to sue. Microsoft has not released the details of the agreement, but HTC will pay "an undisclosed sum" for the IP rights.