Free Masterclass on IP; Nokia and Daimler settle SEP patent dispute; EU submits alternative proposal to WTO against IP waiver and more

In this week’s patent news – Want to know how to file a patent? or expedite the patent process? Join us this week; Nokia and Daimer settle SEP patent dispute, sign patent licensing agreement; EU submits alternative proposal to WTO against IP waiver; and USPTO announces change to its implementation of structured text filing.

Want to know how to file a patent? or expedite the patent process? Join us this week

BananaIP in association with Nasscom will be conducting the 3rd module of the free Masterclass on Intellectual Property, this week, on the 10th of June 2021. In this module, the speakers will help you understand the process of patent filing in India and filing international applications. The session will also cover strategies that patent applicants including inventors, startups and businesses may use to expedite the patent process and obtain patents in as short a time as one year. Register for the free Masterclass by clicking here.

Nokia and Daimler settle SEP patent dispute, sign patent licensing agreement

Nokia and Daimler have announced that the companies have entered into a patent licensing deal which puts an end to all ongoing litigations between the Finnish networking giant and the German Automotive manufacturer. Daimler has agreed to pay Nokia, royalties for use of the latter’s technologies in navigation systems and communications used in Daimler’s cars. While the terms of the agreement remain confidential, reports suggest that Daimler will pay Nokia around 2 dollars per produced car. The deal between the two companies puts an end to a dispute which spanned over two and a half years.

EU submits alternative proposal to WTO against IP waiver

The European Union on Friday submitted a proposal to the World Trade Organization against IP waivers as an alternative to the proposal moved by India and South Africa. The European in its proposal has submitted that focus must be moved on removing the export restrictions and making use of flexibility in existing WTO rules as opposed to the call for waiver of IP rights. The EU in its proposal has contended that a waiver would not necessarily boost production of drugs and vaccines being used in the treatment and management of COVID19. Instead, by removing the export restrictions and encouraging vaccine developers to enter deals with producers in developing countries would help in boosting production. Further, the EU in its proposal has also highlighted that a number of countries already possess provisions of compulsory licensing which may be invoked at national levels. India has unfortunately held contrary positions at home and at the WTO. While at home, the Government is advocating voluntary licensing as a means to the solution, it has held a contradictory stand at the WTO arguing that IP waivers are the way forward.

USPTO announces change to its implementation of structured text filing

The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) is in the process of transitioning to a system that supports submitting new patent applications in structured text, specifically DOCX format. In response to public feedback, the USPTO now considers the DOCX document filed by the applicant to be the authoritative document. Accordingly, an applicant who files an application in DOCX may rely on that version as the source or evidentiary copy of the application to make any corrections to the documents in the application file.

To improve application quality and efficiency, the USPTO will transition to DOCX for all filers on January 1, 2022. The USPTO is hosting regular DOCX training sessions to provide more information, demonstrate how to file and retrieve DOCX files in various patent platforms, and answer any questions. You may read more details about this on USPTO’s official website or by clicking here.


Authored by Gaurav Mishra

About BananaIP Counsels Patent Attorneys

The patent news bulletin is brought to you by the patent division of BananaIP Counsels, a top patent and IP firm in India. Led by Senior Partners, Somashekar Ramakrishna, Nitin Nair and Vinita Radhakrishnan, BananaIP Counsels’ Patent Attorneys are among the leading patent practitioners in the country. They work with clients such as Mahindra and Mahindra, Samsung, HCL, Eureka Forbes, to name a few. The patent attorneys at BananaIP Counsels have strong technical and legal expertise in areas such as IT/Software, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning, Data Analytics, Electronics and Telecommunication, Mechanical, Automotive, Green Energy, Traditional Medicine and Bio/Pharma domains. The firm is a first choice for clients looking for support in patent filing, prosecution, management and strategy in India, and across the world.

This weekly patent news bulletin is a part of their pro bono work, and is aimed at spreading patent awareness. You are free to share the news with appropriate attribution and back link to the source.

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Disclaimer: Kindly note that the news bulletin has been put together from different sources, primary and secondary, and BananaIP’s reporters may not have verified all the news published in the bulletin. You may write to [email protected] for corrections and take down.

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