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Tech’s Frightful Five and Their Allies Come to Brussels

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Tech’s Frightful Five and their Allies Come to Brussels by David L. Cohen

Over the past 100 years corporate America has become quite sophisticated in how it lobbies the US Federal and State government and regulators.   While the messages being promoted may differ, lobbying for corporate interests as diverse as tobacco, sugar (and here), firearms, the environment, fossil fuels, health insurance (and here), financial regulation, and many other fields has become a major business in Washington and around the country.  Indeed, some have argued that the sheer scale of corporate lobbying has allowed it to conquer democracy in America.

It is no surprise, then that Tech’s Frightful Five (Apple, Alphabet/Google, Amazon, Facebook and Microsoft) have become masters of the lobbying game in America.

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Tech’s Frightful Five and Their Allies Come to Brussels

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Tech’s Frightful Five and their Allies Come to Brussels by David L. Cohen

Over the past 100 years corporate America has become quite sophisticated in how it lobbies the US Federal and State government and regulators.   While the messages being promoted may differ, lobbying for corporate interests as diverse as tobacco, sugar (and here), firearms, the environment, fossil fuels, health insurance (and here), financial regulation, and many other fields has become a major business in Washington and around the country.  Indeed, some have argued that the sheer scale of corporate lobbying has allowed it to conquer democracy in America.

It is no surprise, then that Tech’s Frightful Five (Apple, Alphabet/Google, Amazon, Facebook and Microsoft) have become masters of the lobbying game in America.

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Smallest Saleable Patent Practicing Unit (SSPPU) – Another Court Affirms the Obvious

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In the topsy-turvy world of Standard Essential Patent (SEP) litigation, a court acknowledging the obvious often counts as news. Thus, when Judge Gilstrap in EDTX noted the other day in an order before trial (Doc 376) that the ETSI IPR policy does not require royalties being calculated on use by the smallest saleable patent practicing unit (SSPPU) as the base, it generated breathless headlines (Bloomberg).

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John Marshall Law School SEP Licensing Program

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In October I was honored to be part of the John Marshall Law School IP Executive seminar program run by the inestimable Daryl Lim, and to be part of an all-day, three-person panel on Standard Essential Patents (SEPs). My co-panelists were Graham Bell of Cubicibuc Ltd. and Randall Rader, former Chief Judge of the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

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Meet the IP Thought Leaders: Robert Colao

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Meet the IP Thought Leaders: Robert Colao by David L. CohenOver the course of my 20+ years practicing law, I have had the honor of working with many individuals who are involved at the cutting edge of all aspects of intellectual property. I consider myself very lucky that most of these folks, in addition to being luminaries in the industry, are good people and have welcomed me into their professional world with open arms. To celebrate these individuals, I am inaugurating a series of interviews.

My next interviewee, Robert Colao, is the founder and President of radiusIP®, Inc.  He is currently also the Chief Licensing Executive for SIPCO, LLC and IP Co, LLC, and is responsible for the overall licensing efforts and business aspects of the ESSENTIAL WIRELESS MESH™ portfolio/licensing program. Read more

Patent Demand Letters – Escalation or Litigation (Part 5)

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Patent Disputes Part 2 - Escalation or Litigation by David L. CohenIf the patent demand letter situation escalates and you may be sued for infringement, you have options to consider.

  1. Consider filing a lawsuit for declaratory judgment (DJ).

In certain cases you may file a lawsuit against a patent owner for declaration that you are not infringing on any valid patents. Knowing the patent owner’s litigation history is crucial when considering this option. Read more

Patent Demand Letters – Response Tactics (Part 4)

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Patent Demand Letter Response Tactics by David L. CohenIf you receive a patent demand letter, you can choose from many courses of action, but each has pros and cons. Today we will discuss some immediate considerations to consider.

  1. Doing nothing is an option, but a risky one.

Pro: Some patent owners are not committed to actually filing lawsuits. They cast a wide net with lots of demand letters, knowing some recipients will pay nominal amounts to make it go away. If you ignore it, there’s a chance there will be no serious follow-up.

Con: Ignoring a patent demand letter may lead the patent owner to file a lawsuit to get your attention. Read more

Meet the IP Thought Leaders: Eric Stasik

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Meet the IP Thought Leaders: Eric Stasik by David L. CohenI first met Eric Stasik some 5 years ago when I was at Vringo. When we first met, it took no more than 10 minutes to appreciate how lucky I was to have him on my team. Eric has an uncanny ability to, very quickly, see through can’t and cut to the core issues at hand. More importantly, he finds solutions. Eric gets stuff done quickly, effectively, and cost efficiently.  Having seen him at work in the years since, my appreciation of Eric and what he brings to the table has only deepened.

Eric currently provides assistance and guidance to firms engaged in commercial patent license negotiations through his consultancy, Avvika AB.  I am honored he agreed to this interview.
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Meet the IP Thought Leaders: Donal O’Connell

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Meet the IP Thought Leaders: Donal O’Connell by David L. CohenOver the course of my 20+ years practicing law, I have had the honor of working with many individuals at the cutting edge of all aspects of intellectual property. I consider myself very lucky that most of these folks, in addition to being luminaries in the industry, are good people and have welcomed me into their professional world with open arms. To celebrate these individuals, I am inaugurating a series of interviews. Read more

Patent Demand Letters – Immediate Steps You Can Take (Part 3)

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Steps to Take if You Receive a Patent Demand Letter (Part 3) by David L. Cohen

This article is the next piece of my series discussing patent demand letters. Part one, reviewed the initial considerations and steps one should make upon receiving a patent demand letter. Part two explored the subject or content of the letter — i.e., what is the sender asking for? Part three addresses evaluating the merits.

At this stage it might not be worthwhile to perform a full analysis of the letter’s claims, but it is definitely worth performing at least a high-level review.   Read more