For years, United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) leaders have given contractors titles that grant access to a computer system that holds valuable information, former patent office employees say. Unlike USPTO personnel, it’s not clear whether federal contractors go through the same background checks that federal employees go through, according to inventor David Hoyle,…

For years, United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) leaders have given contractors titles that grant access to a computer system that holds valuable information, former patent office employees say. Unlike USPTO personnel, it’s not clear whether federal contractors go through the same background checks that federal employees go through, according to inventor David Hoyle,…

Commentary I was shocked the other day as I walked down the sidewalks of the business district in Washington, D.C., and I saw posters plastered at bus stops and on other walls that showed a man lying on a stretcher with the big bold caption: “Patents Kill.” The group sponsoring the ads is a public…

NEW YORK—Lululemon Athletica Inc. on Monday followed through on its threat to sue Peloton Interactive Inc. over the “copycat products” in the exercise bike company’s new clothing line. The Canadian athletic apparel maker sued Peloton in Los Angeles federal court, seeking triple damages for its rival’s alleged “willful” infringement of six design patents. Lululemon filed…

BERLIN—The head of German pharmaceutical company BioNTech said Monday that there is no need to waive patents on coronavirus vaccines because manufacturers will be able to produce enough shots to supply the world over the coming year. Ugur Sahin, the chief executive of BioNTech, rejected the U.S.-backed proposal to temporarily lift some intellectual property rights…

Non-market factors, such as government mandates and subsidies, caused a rapid increase in patent filings in and from China, according to a just-released report from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). In 2019, 1.5 million utility patent applications and 7.8 million trademark applications were filed in China, accounting for nearly half of global totals….

Commentary On Dec. 11, Senators Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and Chris Coons (D-Del.) sent a letter (pdf) to Andrei Iancu, director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), requesting an inquiry into whether “qualified women are unnecessarily excluded from membership in the ‘patent bar.’” In other words, is there a systemic,…