Recognizing the complex, rapidly evolving nature of software innovation, the US Patent and Trademark Office (PTO) has formed a partnership with the software community and is holding two “roundtable” discussions this month to solicit input on how best to improve the quality of the software-related patents it issues. I spoke for BSA today at the … Read More >>
Tag: patents
Kappos Offers Fact-Driven Analysis of the Software Patent System
Against the backdrop of an ongoing debate in industry and policy circles about the impact of software patents on innovation and the economy, US Patent and Trademark Director Dave Kappos this morning argued that the patent system works well. His remarks came in a keynote address at the Center for American Progress, which is worth … Read More >>
Manipulating Technology Standards to Impede Competition
The point of having standards is to create a consistent set of rules, or models, for all parties to follow. That point seems to be lost, though, on governments in many emerging markets. When it comes to technology, countries like China and India are trying to create their own patchwork of unique standards — many … Read More >>
Celebrating the Power of Ideas
The English author H.G. Wells is thought to have said, “Human history is, in essence, the history of ideas.” How right he was considering the visionary innovators who have transformed the world with great ideas. Thomas Edison, Henry Ford, Johann Gutenberg, plus more modern day icons such as Steve Jobs and Bill Gates — to … Read More >>
IP: The Not-So-Secret Sauce in the US Economy
If there was any doubt, a new report from the Commerce Department makes it abundantly clear that intellectual property is the secret sauce in the US economy, officially contributing roughly one-third of the country’s GDP and more than a quarter of its employment. If you are keeping score, that comes to $5 trillion and 40 … Read More >>