I had the honor of representing SIIA at the July 16-17, 2019 “International Conference on AI-Emerging Technologies and Intellectual Property – Connecting the Bits.”  Many thanks to the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), the Israeli Patent Office, and the Israeli Innovation Authority.   My panel participation presentation on “AI and Regulation – The Broader Picture” can be found here.  During my remarks, I focused on trade agreement protections relevant to AI, protections for proprietary data, and explainability/auditability issues.  There were a few themes that struck me from the two days of conversations with colleagues.  First, participants did not contemplate omnibus AI legislation or regulation.  Second, intellectual property remains a key tool in incentivizing AI innovation.  Third, there are a number of interesting conversations about AI and patent law, some of which touch directly on SIIA a ...

Pam is walking around Shanghai and sees shops that contain shoes, handbags, clothes, and jewelry that are all emblazoned with the logos of famous designers.  Upon walking inside, she notices that many of these products, while not very cheap, are still markedly cheaper than if she were to buy the exact same product in the United States.  The quality looks and feels great, so without a second thought, she purchases a handbag.  After all, this isn’t a shady stand on a roadside.  This is a seemingly legitimate store.  It isn’t until she’s back in the United States that she discovers that the Louis Vuitton handbag that she bought is a fake. This type of situation is fairly common.  There are often only subtle differences between a real and fake product that may not be detectable at first touch or first look.  Other times, people are aware that what they’re purchasing is a counterfeit good and simply don’t care.  Regard ...

In their landmark decision on May 22nd, the Supreme Court decided 8-0 in favor of TC Heartland over Kraft Foods Group, changing the dynamics of patent litigation across the country. In the case itself, Kraft sued TC Heartland, claiming that TC Heartland had infringed on Kraft’s patent for the low-calorie water sweetener, MiO.  The Court held that the defendant could only be sued in the state in which it was incorporated.  Earlier this week, the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Courts and Intellectual Property held a hearing on the impact of the TC Heartland decision, and heard testimony that although the TC Heartland decision is helpful, it is not a panacea for litigation abuse.

More Federal Open Source Appreciated, If it Behaves (FCW) Tech groups weigh in on the White House’s new proposed policy to make software code used by federal agencies open source.  While many are voicing support, there is still concern that certain types of software that will be required to be made open source should not be made so. German Court Ruling Threatens Apple’s Video Services (Reuters) Apple was found by a German district court to have violated patents from the Swiss security company, Kudelski that are related to its video-streaming services.  Now there is pressure on Apple to seek a licensing deal with Kudelski unless it simply disables these features.

U.S. Top Court Mulls Boosted Patent Damages in Stryker, Halo Cases (Reuters) The U.S. Supreme Court showed that they may be willing to relax the standard held by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit where to be awarded damages in a patent suit, the patent owner “must prove a defendant acted despite a high likelihood of infringement and had no reasonable explanation to do so.”

Senate Judiciary Committee Votes in Favor of Passage of an Amended Defend Trade Secrets Act (Lexology) On Thursday, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted in favor of the passage of an amended version of the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016.

Senate Judiciary to markup trade secrets, Judicial Redress Bills (Politico Pro) The Senate Judiciary Committee scheduled the Defend Trade Secrets Act and the Judicial Redress Act on its agenda for markup this week.  This bill would give companies the means to go after trade secret thieves in federal court.

In the internet environment, copyright enforcement often begins with filing a John Doe suit against unknown infringers identified by IP addresses, figuring out which ISP owns those addresses, and then obtaining information from the ISP about the identity of a particular subscriber.  In Killer Joe Nevada v. Leaverton, the Eight Circuit held that a district court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to award attorneys’ fees when a copyright plaintiff voluntarily dismissed a case against a particular individual that was identified by IP address.

A new Congress and a reinvigorated Administration mean legislation of interest to SIIA’s members is likely to pass in 2015.  We intend to be pro-active and vigilant to ensure that this legislation responds to the broad public interest, including preserving and advancing the business interests and opportunities of SIIA’s member companies.