IBM sells 500 patents; Big four unite against open source NPE threat; Don’t bet on UPC breakthrough; Apple talks FRAND strategy; Time to rethink EPO oppositions; 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

MONDAY 18th November

TCL unit secures Shenzhen injunction against domestic rival Chongqing HKC in latest sign that China’s display panel patent war is intensifying. Read more here

South Africa's top court issues first patent decision but fails to clarify infringement defence uncertainties. Read more here

What started largely as a patent spat is set to become a software industry blockbuster after the Supreme Court granted cert late last week in Google v Oracle. Read more here

TUESDAY 19th November

AliBaba is due to price its Hong Kong secondary listing this week. Five years after its NYSE debut, the company has a more formidable patent portfolio and new IP-based alliances. Read more here

Opposition strategies at the EPO may need to be recalibrated in light of new evidence that the office is dealing with proceedings much more quickly than before. Read more here

IBM, Microsoft, the Linux Foundation and OIN join forces to counter perceived open source threat from NPEs. Read more here

WEDNESDAY 20th November

Goldpeak Innovations, a South Korean NPE created to monetise former Pantech patents, is back on the transactions radar with an apparent sale to Samsung Electronics. Read more here

Microsoft and Intel are providing the keynotes at the inaugural Data Business Congress, with senior leaders from a wide range of companies confirmed for the speaking faculty. Read more here

Senior players with backgrounds at IV, Kudelski and Lenovo, among others, have $10 million in hand and a plan to clear patent risk in the video sector. Read more here

THURSDAY 21st November

At IPBC Australasia in Melbourne, patent owners say more guidance from the patent office would be welcome after courts declined to clarify eligibility rules in a recent decision. Read more here

Several leading Democratic presidential candidates are threatening to circumvent pharma IP, so next year’s election could prove pivotal for life sciences patent owners. Read more here

With Intel deal set to close, and as courts around the world continue to weigh in on standards debate, Apple stakes out its position on SEPs and FRAND. Read more here

FRIDAY 22nd November

Three key IP dynamics facing automakers in Asia as they prepare for the Auto IP Asia conference in Shanghai next month. Read more here

Despite possible German Constitutional Court breakthrough, don't bet on the UPC's fate becoming clearer any time soon. Read more here   

IBM’s big patent sell off continues with divestment of 500 assets, but its latest deal is not with an operating company. Read more here

SATURDAY 23rd November

It’s welcome that more rights owners than ever before are banding together to remedy patent market problems, but it may lead in an all-too-familiar direction. Read more here

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