Features
Patent pools have proliferated over the last 20 years, with varying degrees of success. Whether they can continue to solve some of the thorniest issues in the licensing market will determine their future
The increasing integration of information and communication technologies in vehicles is creating new challenges for licensing patents in general and for negotiating royalty payments for standard-essential patents in particular
Last year, the Japanese licensing market showed a trend for increasingly creative and innovative IP deals. However, rather than congratulating themselves, executives should push for even more return on investment
While Japanese companies have doubled down on open source software collaboration, including in new areas such as auto, Chinese firms have been slower to embrace it, which risks isolating projects from a key emerging technology centre
Trade tensions between the United States and China could cast a large shadow over the way that IP business is carried out by companies from both nations
Selling patents on the open market in the United States is getting more difficult and less lucrative. Over in Asia, though, local brokers are busier than ever
The governance structures and inner workings of patent pools vary – as do the dilemmas faced by these collective licensing programmes
While events outside the conventional IP world have conspired to raise the profile of trade secrets, neither corporations nor their legal advisers typically know how to handle them proactively
Insights
A round-up of IP-related quotes, observations and opinions from the recent past …
Based on different continents and very different in size, Microsoft and Fractus are united by a sophisticated understanding of IP value which is delivering tangible results. Others would be well advised to heed their example
Data centre
A selection of key IP facts and figures, as reported by IAM and other sources
Columns
A patent portfolio will never be aligned with the overall strategy of the business if there is no corporate input into its development
New SIPO guidelines take a pro-innovation line on business method and software claims, as China looks to boost its burgeoning internet and e-commerce sector
The bitter patent war fought by Edison and Westinghouse for control of electricity is depicted in a best-selling novel, soon to be a major motion picture
In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in Samsung v Apple, design patent owners are waiting for the lower courts to articulate a standard for awarding total profits on the sale of products protected by a patented design
Roundtable
Since its establishment in 2012, the Patent Trial and Appeal Board has reshaped the US patent litigation landscape. Whether you think it is helping to improve patent quality or killing IP rights, there is no doubt that the changes have been profound
