BlackBerry patent sale price agreed; Leahy seeks PTAB reform; China’s $54bn IP royalty target; Qualcomm portfolio analysed; ZTE licensing exclusive; plus much more
Everything we covered on IAM over the last seven days – and all you need to know from the global IP market to set yourself up for the start of another busy week
Benchmarking the IP5 Patent Offices
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The Long Read
The downward trend in US patent cases driven by inter partes review proceedings and a series of changes to the law has reversed. Litigation at the district courts is back in full swing, writes IAM data reporter Bridget Diakun, and so are non-practising entities. Read more here
MONDAY 20 September
Umicore, a Belgian materials company in the midst of a strategic pivot to electric vehicle parts, is doubling down on enforcing its patent rights against a Chinese competitor. Read more here
Respondents are leaving it later to disclose potential design arounds that may allow them to circumvent findings of patent infringement at the ITC. But all is not lost for complainants. Read more here
The IEEE’s 2015 patent policy has proved to be enduringly controversial and now stakeholders have the chance to comment on possible changes. Read more here
TUESDAY 21 September
Taiwan-based FG Innovation has sold a second batch of patents to a major NPE, just days after another of its portfolios became the basis for the first 5G patent assertion in US courts. Read more here
Department of Health ideas to tackle perceived patent abuses that keep US drug prices high may not amount to much, but FDA proposals to the USPTO could be heading in the right direction. Read more here
A restructuring at Toshiba has seen the company sell a number of patents to diverse buyers and further reorganisation could mean more assets hitting the secondary market. Read more here
WEDNESDAY 22 September
As TCL increasingly sells devices under its own brand, it may be looking to bulk up a patent portfolio that lags well behind other those owned by other Chinese smartphone companies. Read more here
Senator Patrick Leahy wants to legislate to reverse former PTAB reforms, overseen by former USPTO Director Andrei Iancu, that he believes have undermined the America Invents Act. Read more here
THURSDAY 23 September
In a high-level policy document, Chinese leaders have set a target for the import and export of IP royalties to reach a value of $54 billion by 2025. Read more here
A sale price for the BlackBerry patents has been agreed and the deal has an 80% chance of being done this quarter, says the company’s CEO. Read more here
Qualcomm is an IP licensing superpower because it produces world class technology that others cannot afford to be without. Read more here
FRIDAY 24 September
As ZTE seeks to establish itself as a major licensor, senior IP executive Marco Tong tells IAM about the company’s monetisation motives and principles. Read more here
A recent tech transfer request to Moderna from the WHO’s African vaccine hub will shine a new light on the company’s covid-19 IP sharing commitment. Read more here
Although Patrick Leahy has yet to file his bill proposing reform of the PTAB system at the USPTO, that has not stopped the battle lines being drawn over its merits. Read more here
SATURDAY 25 September
An IP development framework announced in China this week calls for more cross-border IP royalty flows but fostering a domestic licensing market is just as important. Read more here
