Singapore’s new patent system ready to go Singapore’s revamp of its patent system is set to take effect on February 14. Hong Kong, its closest competitor, is looking to follow suit By Peter Leung January 30 2014
Is the US IP system really the world’s best? The Global Intellectual Property Centre is out with its 2nd International IP Index, and its findings may raise a few eyebrows By Michael Loney January 30 2014
Obama calls for patent reform in State of the Union speech US President Barack Obama called for Congress to pass a patent reform bill during his State of the Union address By Michael Loney January 29 2014
Supreme Court’s Medtronic reversal will embolden licensees The Supreme Court’s unanimous overturning of the Federal Court decision in Medtronic v Mirowski Family Ventures will remove uncertainty over which party has the burden of proof in patent licensing disputes and may lea... By Michael Loney January 29 2014
Extend IP terms for pharma, says report on new drugs Policy makers should consider extending the term of IP protection offered to pharmaceutical products to encourage more research into new drugs, a new report has recommended By Emma Barraclough January 29 2014
Australia seeks to boost patent ties with New Zealand Australia IP has opened a public consultation on the Intellectual Property Laws Amendment Bill 2014, which seeks to create a unified Australia-New Zealand patent attorney registry as well as a single examination syste... By Peter Leung January 29 2014
How will the unitary patent affect Hong Kong applications? The Unitary Patent will add a new wrinkle to Hong Kong’s patent recordal system, but those who opt for the new regional patent should be able to use it to gain protection in Hong Kong By Peter Leung January 29 2014
Supreme Court refuses to hear Saffran v Johnson & Johnson appeal The US Supreme Court refused on Monday to hear an appeal from a doctor asking it to reinstate a $482 million patent infringement award against Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Cordis By Alli Pyrah January 27 2014
Samsung and Google sign patent licence agreement Samsung Electronics and Google have announced a global patent cross-licence agreement covering a broad range of technologies and business areas By Michael Loney January 26 2014
Steptoe & Johnson opens Palo Alto office Steptoe & Johnson is opening an office in Palo Alto, California, and has hired patent litigator William Abrams as its managing partner By Managing IP Correspondent January 24 2014
SIPO issues guidance on FRAND commitments in national standards; The rules released by SIPO’s National Standardization Committee provide a framework governing how patents should be applied to national standards By Peter Leung January 24 2014
The week in IP - Qualcomm buys HP patents, Candy trade mark leaves bad taste, Rockstar ... A selection of intellectual property stories from around the world that grabbed headlines this week By Michael Loney January 24 2014
US Supreme Court unanimously overturns Federal Circuit decision in Medtronic The US Supreme Court has unanimously reversed the Federal Circuit decision in Medtronic v Boston Scientific, reinforcing the established rule that the patent owner bears the burden of proving that infringement has occ... By Alli Pyrah January 22 2014
InterDigital to appeal China rulings Though InterDigital and Huawei have agreed to submit most of their disputes to arbitration, a source close to the patent assertion entity says that it will appeal the decision in the Chinese cases to the Supreme Peopl... By Peter Leung January 22 2014
New Turkish firm opens A new law firm focusing on industries including life sciences and healthcare has been launched in Istanbul By Managing IP Correspondent January 21 2014
MPs cautious about design crime plans British MPs have raised concerns about plans to introduce criminal penalties for design infringement during the second reading of the government’s IP bill By James Nurton January 21 2014
AIA forces changes in invention capture and review procedures: study The America Invents Act has prompted many companies to make changes in their invention capture and review procedures and public disclosure polices, according to a study released by IP advisory firm ipPerformance By Michael Loney January 17 2014
The week in IP – Record EPO applications, Cronut gets trade mark, Marvin Gaye’s estate ... A selection of intellectual property stories from around the world that grabbed headlines this week By Michael Loney January 17 2014
2014 looking like a bad year to be a patent troll Patent trolls came under a lot of fire near the end of last year, as the US House of Representatives debated the Innovation Act and the Senate readied its own legislation to tackle patent abuse. The focus on patent tr... By Michael Loney January 16 2014
New York AG "patent troll" settlement touted as model for other states New York attorney general Eric Schneiderman has announced a settlement with MPHJ Technology Investments that has been described as a model for other states to follow when taking on patent trolls By Michael Loney January 14 2014
Bond Dickinson hires IP partner Solicitor Patrick Cantrill is joining UK law firm Bond Dickinson from Walker Morris, where he was head of the IP department By Managing IP Correspondent January 14 2014
Delhi High Court relaxes section 8 requirements Patent owners can breathe a sigh of relief as the Delhi High Court calls for a less strict interpretation of section 8 of the India Patents Act, but the matter is not settled yet By Peter Leung January 14 2014
Supreme Court agrees to hear two patent cases The US Supreme Court today granted review for two patent cases, one copyright case and one trade mark case. The cases are Limelight Networks v Akamai Technologies, Nautilus v Biosig Instruments, ABC v Aereo and POM Wo... By Michael Loney January 10 2014
Federal Circuit affirms Apple’s iPhones do not infringe Google’s patent The US Federal Circuit has upheld a decision by the country’s International Trade Commission (ITC) which ruled that Apple’s iPhones do not violate a Google patent By Alli Pyrah January 10 2014
Concerns mount over Alice v CLS Bank case at Supreme Court One of the most watched patent cases this year will be the US Supreme Court’s ruling in Alice v CLS Bank. Observers hope this will at last provide some certainty around interpreting Section 101 after more than four de... By Michael Loney January 09 2014
Are medical treatment method patents useful in Australia? Australia’s High Court confirms the patentability of medical treatment methods, but the ruling on label carve-outs may limit enforceability By Peter Leung January 09 2014
EU Commission outlines IP focus The head of the European Commission’s IP team has set out the EU’s priorities for 2014 in an interview with Managing IP By Emma Barraclough January 08 2014
Rockstar sells 101 patents to Spherix The Rockstar Consortium, an organisation formed by companies including Microsoft and Apple to acquire the Nortel patents, has agreed to sell a portfolio of 101 patents to IP monetisation company Spherix. By Alli Pyrah January 07 2014
Edwards Wildman adds former FTC official as IP partner in DC Edward Glynn has joined Edwards Wildman Palmer’s office in Washington, DC as a partner in its intellectual property department. By Michael Loney January 07 2014
17 offices launch global PPH pilot Patent applicants whose claims have been accepted in one participating office can now request accelerated examination in up to 16 other offices under the global patent prosecution highway pilot By James Nurton January 07 2014
US Supreme Court will decide whether to hear patent cases including Limelight The Supreme Court will decide on Friday whether it will hear several important patent cases including Limelight v Akamai, a case which may clarify the law on so-called divided infringement. By Alli Pyrah January 06 2014
EIP hires litigation partner from Teva UK firm EIP has hired Matthew Jones as a partner in its London office, in the latest in a string of expansive moves by the firm By Simon Crompton January 06 2014
New SIPO director appointed Shen Changyu has replaced Tian Lipu as head of China’s IP office By Peter Leung January 06 2014