High-tech seeks patent policy changes

Congress is considering an overhaul of U.S. patent policy that would bring the first major changes in more than half a century. The giant technology sector stands firmly behind the issue, but small firms and startups oppose it. The bill is trying to bring the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in line with international standards and streamline the patent process in the U.S., where the patent office faces a huge backlog of applications.

A proposed revision would put patent challenges in front of patent  judges instead of patent examiners. It would provide uniform standards for hearing appeals and a tight time frame for the procedure. Too complicated for you? Big technology companies argue that the proposed process would strengthen the patents that make it through. And it may be the single best way of speeding up ways to get patents approved in real time instead of taking years like it does right now.

The review would be "essential to maintaining high-quality patents because it allows the validity of questionable patents to be tested," said Horacio Gutierrez, deputy general counsel of Microsoft.

IBM says the process is "a low-cost alternative to litigation," but smaller companies and start-ups don't like it. Many small companies fear that rich businesses could attempt through the review to keep innovative products from hitting the market. "This may be catastrophic for a start-up or small inventor," said Dean Kamen, inventor of the Segway, the highly successful personal electric scooter.

A coalition of major technology companies, the Coalition for Patent Fairness, is also opposing changes in the legislation because it would "dilute in any way the efficacy of post-grant challenges."

What will happen? Our guess is that patent reform legislation will collapse once again and the lengthy process to get a patent and fend off challenges will continue indefinitely.

For more on patent reform:
- see this Wall Street Journal article

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