As some readers may be aware (I have previously mentioned it only in passing) a firm in the IPH Limited (ASX:IPH) group – the market cap of which is A$1.56B at publication – is once again taking legal action against a recently-established firm and its founders, all of whom are former
Latest from Patentology - Page 2
Disciplinary Decision Against Registered Attorney a Reminder of the Importance of Clear Communication and Record Keeping
Back in July, the Trans-Tasman IP Attorneys Disciplinary Tribunal (‘the Tribunal’) issued a decision in relation to a complaint about a registered attorney (‘the attorney’) by a client (‘the client’) in response to which the Trans-Tasman IP Attorneys Board (TTIPAB, a.k.a. ‘the Board’) commenced disciplinary proceedings, bringing nine charges against the attorney. The full decision…
IP Australia is Seeking Feedback on Proposed Fee Changes
IP Australia has published a draft of its four-yearly Cost Recovery Implementation Statement (CRIS), which outlines proposed fee changes that would take effect from October 2024. It is also taking the opportunity to review the hearing costs that may be awarded for Patents, Trade Marks and Designs. Feedback on the proposals may be provided…
Profile of the Creator of AI ‘Inventor’ DABUS Raises More Questions About International Test Cases
A profile of DABUS creator Dr Stephen Thaler, written by Tomas Weber and published by The Economist in April 2023, paints a picture of a rather isolated man – a septuagenarian, the product of a traumatic childhood, slightly paranoid, seemingly obsessed with his creation, and whose supportive wife seems resigned to the reality that he…
Intellectual Property is Integral to AI Regulation, and Getting it Wrong Will Hand More Power to Big Tech
Governments around the world are considering how they can – and should – regulate the development and deployment of increasingly powerful and disruptive artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. Australia is no exception. On 1 June 2023, the Australian government announced the release of two papers intended to help ‘ensure the growth of artificial intelligence technologies (AI)…
Zombie Patents! Can Expired Innovation Patents Still Be Examined and Certified?
The Australian Patent Office recently issued two decisions on the examination and certification of innovation patents owned by UK company Diogenes Limited: Diogenes Limited [2023] APO 5 concerning innovation patent no. 2020104437 (‘Diogenes 1’); and Diogenes Limited [2023] APO 8 concerning innovation patent no. 2021103809 (‘Diogenes 2’). Both patents claim inventions relating to electronic pool…
IPH Sues Again, as Competition Hots Up for Australian and New Zealand Patent Filings in 2022
As I recently reported, Australian (standard) patent filings in 2022 remained close to the historic highs of the previous year. This implies, of course, that patent attorneys filing applications on behalf of domestic and foreign clients should, overall, also have maintained high numbers of new filings. But, of course, individual firms fared differently in…
Korea’s LG Tops Australian Patent Filing Table, While IBM Surprises in Second Place
In recent years, the title of leading filer of Australian patent applications has been hotly (though probably inadvertently) contested between Huawei Technologies Ltd (China), Guangdong OPPO Mobile Telecommunications Ltd (China), and LG Electronics (South Korea). In 2022, LG was a clear winner, with 283 new standard patent applications. Huawei filed 181 applications, while OPPO disappeared…
Australian Patent Filings Declined Slightly in 2022, but Held at Historic Highs by Strong International Interest
In 2022, for the second year running, the number of standard patent applications filed in Australia exceeded 30,000. While there was a slight decline of 0.5% compared with 2021, filings remained at a historic high. This was, however, primarily due to continuing growth of nearly 1% in applications originating overseas. Applications from Australian residents fell…
Will AI Chatbots Make Patent Attorneys Obsolete? (No, They Won’t)
If you have any interest at all in technology, and possibly even if you do not, it is very likely that over the past few weeks you have read or heard something about OpenAI’s ChatGPT chatbot, which was released for public testing on 30 November 2022. OpenAI describes itself as ‘an AI research and…