Free COVID-19 coverage; German court puts UPC on life support; Ex-Microsoft patent head joins Marconi; Sharp attacks Tesla; IBM top for 2019 patent sales; 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

NOTE: IAM has made all its content relating to COVID-19 and coronavirus free-to-view. You can access our back catalogue via this link

MONDAY 16th March

Marconi has hired former Microsoft chief patent counsel Micky Minhas. He will join as a senior vice president, although his precise role at the firm is at this point unclear. Read more here

Giving away a patented antiviral drug to treat Covid-19 would not protect an entity from infringement claims under Chinese law, but it may make a court less likely to award injunctive relief. Read more here

TUESDAY 17th March

IP Bridge has launched a new US litigation campaign for the first time in two years, targeting Micron with four patents related to DRAM memory technology. Read more here

Leading players in the IP litigation funding space tell IAM about trends in the biopharma industry and advise on how best to get investment. Read more here

Fortress IP makes patents available free for COVID-19 related work after French defendant announces it has launched three tests relating to coronavirus. Read more here

WEDNESDAY 18th March

Chinese firm’s court defeat provides an early confirmation that the Defend Trade Secrets Act 2016 will be interpreted to reach actions in foreign countries. Read more here

In echoes of its previous InterDigital litigation, u-box turns again to US district court to accuse Sisvel of seeking “unreasonable royalty rates”. Read more here

THURSDAY 19th March

Sharp brings the auto IP wars to Asia with Tokyo suit against Tesla; Elon Musk company now faces two assertions by Avanci members. Read more here

A recent majority CAFC decision is unexpected good news for diagnostics innovators, but it is likely to be challenged so uncertainty remains for now. Read more here

The healthcare and pharma sector saw a jump in US patents sales in 2019 in a market that remains dominated by operating companies on the buy and sell sides. Read more here

FRIDAY 20th March

Constitutional Court’s decision that Germany’s accession to the UPC Agreement is illegal focuses on process not principle, but in reality the project is dead – for now, at least. Read more here

Patents originally held by ITRI, Taiwan’s state-owned research body, have become a legal roadblock in the US for two major Taiwanese companies. Read more here

Data analysis indicates that the Theranos patent portfolio now owned by Fortress IP is of high-quality, with widespread geographic coverage. Read more here

IBM tops the 2019 US patent sales charts, with Globalfoundries, Intellectual Ventures and Samsung also featuring on the leader board. Read more here

SATURDAY 21st March

Recent moves by Nokia and InterDigital show some SEP owners now understand the importance of winning licensing battles in the court of public opinion, as well as in the courts themselves. Read more here

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