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February 15, 2008
Back story on patent reform opposition
Earlier this month, I posted a piece on the prospects for patent reform legislation. That piece (from IP Watch) noted the Commerce Department's problems with the pending patent reform bill. Here is the back story of one provision that triggered those concerns -- Lawmakers Move to Grant Banks Immunity Against Patent Lawsuit - washingtonpost.com
Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) has sponsored an unusual provision at the urging of the nation's banks granting them immunity against an active patent lawsuit, potentially saving them billions of dollars.
Adopted with little fanfare, the amendment would prevent a small Texas company called DataTreasury from collecting damages from banks for infringing on its patented method for digitally scanning, sending and archiving checks. The patents were upheld last summer by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office after they were challenged.
The provision, passed without dissent by the Senate Judiciary Committee in July and inserted into legislation scheduled for a vote by the full Senate this month, is a rare attempt by Congress to intervene in ongoing litigation, congressional experts say.
The Commerce Department's letter specifically opposes this provision:
Check Collection
The Administration opposes the bill's provisions to limit remedies against financial institutions that use patented check collection systems, when such use would otherwise be patent infringement. Limiting patent holders' rights and remedies in this instance could reduce innovation in this technology area. As a general matter, the Administration does not support exceptions to patent protection based on a particular technology.
The Post story cites banking industry claims that this is a case of a patent troll - hence the need for the legislative solution.
I don't know the facts in this case. I don't know if this is a patent troll or an inventor seeking redress (the story does mention that some banks have licensed the technology while others have not). I am also a strong supporter of patent reform. But this strikes me as the wrong way to go about it.
Posted by Ken Jarboe at February 15, 2008 8:29 AM
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» Banking patent update from The Intangible Economy
A couple of months ago, I posted a piece on one of the battles being fought as part of the patent reform legislation -- in this case a provision inserted in the bill in committee with little discussion that would... [Read More]
Tracked on April 12, 2008 10:10 AM