Bush administration, tech titans clash on patents

[sabra]

Source: CNet News

Renewed objections this week from the Bush administration could complicate the passage of a sweeping patent law rewrite backed by seemingly every prominent hardware and software maker on the map.

As the so-called Patent Reform Act of 2007 awaits action in the U.S. Senate, the Bush administration is once again raising alarms about the proposal's effects on mainstream manufacturers and small inventors. (Here's the entire letter (PDF) sent Monday to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), whose panel approved an amended version of the proposal last summer.)

The Bush administration says it doesn't have any qualms about "modernizing" the patent system in ways designed to weed out bad patents and boost the efficiency of the process. But it strongly opposes the Senate bill in its current form because it "doesn't yet strike the right balance for all innovators," Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property Jon Dudas told reporters in a conference call Tuesday morning.

....

The administration's key concern is a section that it argues waters down the ability of judges to award damages in patent suits as they see fit, potentially depriving patent holders of the right to obtain the compensation they deserve. Right now, the Senate bill doesn't give judges or juries enough discretion in deciding how much to award, Dudas said. That's been arguably the biggest sticking point all along among supporters and opponents of the bill.

...

In addition to the Bush administration, major manufacturers (think General Electric, 3M, and Procter & Gamble), pharmaceutical makers, biotechnology and nanotechnology companies, venture capitalists, small businesses and inventors, some universities and research institutions, and companies like Qualcomm oppose the measure. They all tend to have business models that rely heavily on vigorous enforcement of their patents and therefore object to efforts to limit the damages they can receive if their inventions are infringed.

Read more: http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9865029-7.html?tag=newsmap

[truthisfreedom]

1. Anything bushco is for is almost always bad for the rest of us. How is the little guy hurt by

bushco's position on this?

[ToughLuck]

2. Isn't it interesting ..

that this administration is worried that judges might not give enough money in lawsuits to the patent owner should he need to sue for patent infringement BUT, never is BUSH heard to take that view when doctor screws up and a guy is dead from malpractice..those suits should have caps.

[ixion]

3. yeah, you can be very sure it has absolutely nothing to do with protecting small business and

"innovators"...boosh wouldn't know an innovator OR a small business if it bit him on the ass.