Patent Reform Bill Approved by House Committee 95
Alex Forster pointed us to this PC World story that opens, "The House Committee on the Judiciary approved far-reaching legislation to reform the nation's patent system Wednesday.
The Patent Reform Act of 2007 largely reflects the IT sector's lobbying effort to curtail lengthy, expensive patent infringement lawsuits, but Wednesday's committee deliberations centered on finding compromises acceptable to opponents — namely the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries, manufacturers, and large research universities — so that the bill could win approval.
Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., described the current patent system as inefficient, bogged down by inappropriate litigation rules, unreliably funded, and resulting in patents of "questionable quality." The bill would make it harder to secure a patent and easier for rivals to challenge one, and it would change how courts determine an infringed patent's value."
Quick... (Score:2, Funny)
2. Sue the government.
3. Profit!
Quick! (Score:3, Funny)
It has come to our attention that Congress will soon make it more difficult to patent out innovations. Under the new rules, some of our innovations such as our "two click on-line shopping" invention and our "three click shopping for healthcare" invention would be unpatentable.
Although shocking, our legal staff tells us that it is very unlikely that our existing patents will be nullified. We'll still have patent rights on three-click healthcare.
Please note that this is the time to ramp up the filing while we still have the chance! This week, Robert is planning to file "combination TV remote and firearm", "Fuel pump/ATM combination device", "guitar with integrated video display", and "Retail sales of iPod accessories made after 2008". People, PLEASE talk to Robert to get your filings in ASAP - because otherwise, we'll have to really innovate, and that will damage our bottom line.
Re:I must thank the Communists... (Score:2, Funny)
Fight those Commie free-marketers!