Other Barks & Bites, Friday, September 6: CAFC Says State Sovereignty Doesn’t Authorize Suit in Improper Venue; USPTO Revises Guidance on U.S.-Licensed Attorney Requirement for Trademark Applicants

Bites (noun): more meaty news to sink your teeth into.

Barks (noun): peripheral noise worth your attention.

https://depositphotos.com/80038942/stock-photo-dog-reading-newspaper.htmlThis week in Other Barks & Bites: the Chinese government announces stricter punitive measures in its IP system; the Federal Circuit says state sovereignty principles do not allow the University of Texas to bring suit in an otherwise improper venue; Congressional leadership asks Google to expand copyright protections under its Content ID tool; Google and Facebook to face antitrust probes from state AGs; George Mason University to create an Innovation Law Clinic; Ariana Grande files a copyright and trademark infringement suit against Forever 21; the Hudson Institute publishes a report on China’s 5G developments; and South Korea’s government has reportedly been collecting copyright payments for use of North Korean TV broadcasts.

Bites

CAFC Strikes Down University of Texas’ Argument on Sovereign Immunity and Venue – On Thursday, September 5, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit issued a precedential decision in Board of Regents of the University of Texas System v. Boston Scientific Corporation in which the Federal Circuit held that state sovereignty principles asserted by the University of Texas don’t grant the school the right to bring a patent infringement suit in an improper venue, affirming a ruling to transfer venue of the case from the Western District of Texas to Delaware.

USPTO Issues Revised Examination Guide on U.S.-Licensed Attorney Requirement – In response to comments about its new rule, effective on August 3, requiring that only U.S. licensed attorneys represent foreign-domiciled trademark applicants, the USPTO has issued revised examination guidance clarifying certain points.

UKIPO Reports 97% Increase in Online Domains Suspended for Criminal Activity – On Thursday, September 5, the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) issued its IP Crime and Enforcement Report for 2018-19 which indicated that 32,813 domains had been suspended for criminal activity including counterfeiting and piracy, a 97%  increase over the previous study period.

Hudson Institute Issues Report on China’s Efforts to Dominate 5G Development – On Thursday, September 5, The Hudson Institute published a report authored by the think tank’s security tech expert, Bill Schneider, detailing efforts undertaken by the Chinese government to take a dominant position in 5G network development, including satellite constellation deployment and digital payment infrastructure buildout.

South Korean Government Collecting Copyright Fees for North Korean TV – On Friday, September 6, North Korea News reported that South Korean government officials have been asking foreign media outlets to pay copyright fees for their use of North Korean television broadcasts. Collected funds are expected to be transmitted to North Korea’s government in a potential violation of international sanctions rules.

Congressional Leadership Asks Google to Expand Content ID to All Copyright Owners – On Tuesday, September 3, a group of eight federal lawmakers including Sens. Thom Tillis (R-NC) and Chris Coons (D-DE), respectively the Chair and Ranking Member of the Senate IP Subcommittee, and Representatives Hank Johnson (D-GA) and Martha Roby (R-AL), respectively the Chair and Ranking Member of the House IP Subcommittee, sent a letter to Google CEO Sundar Pichai asking for information regarding the company’s Content ID copyright protection technology and expressing concerns that copyright owners holding smaller catalogs of copyrighted content cannot utilize Content ID services.

China Announces Stricter Punitive Measures in Intellectual Property System – On Monday, September 2, Chinese state-run media announced that Shen Changyu, Director of China’s National Intellectual Property Administration (CNIPA), made remarks at the 10th China IP Annual Conference discussing plans for punitive measures to address trademark infringement and build a compensation system related to medicine patent protection.

Huawei Issues Statement Pushing Back on WSJ Claims of DoJ Patent Probe – On Monday, September 2, Chinese tech giant Huawei issued an official statement on its website that calls recent allegations by The Wall Street Journal over U.S. Department of Justice patent theft probes false, arguing that none of Huawei’s core technologies have ever been the subject of a criminal case brought against the firm.

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Barks

FDA Announces Proposed Patent Information Collection – On Thursday, September 5, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) published a notice in the Federal Register that announced that a proposal for the collection of information has been submitted to the Office for Management and Budget regarding patent information related to New Drug Application (NDA) approvals.

FDA Announces 4.5-Year Regulatory Review Period for Giapreza – On Thursday, September 5, the FDA published a notice in the Federal Register announcing that it had determined that Giapreza, a drug developed by La Jolla Pharmaceutical and approved for increasing blood pressure in adults experience septic shock, had a regulatory review period of 1,639 days, or nearly 4.5 years, for purposes of approving a patent term restoration under the Drug Price Competition and Patent Term Restoration Act of 1984.

George Mason Creates Innovation Law Clinic – On Wednesday, September 4, George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School announced that it would be establishing an Innovation Law Clinic to be headed up by Sean O’Connor, Executive Director of the Center for the Protection of Intellectual Property (CPIP) at the Antonin Scalia Law School. The clinic will enable students to work with businesses local to George Mason on analyzing technology portfolios and developing business roadmaps. 

https://depositphotos.com/10882248/stock-photo-cross-breed-dog-4-years.htmlUSPTO Issues Interim Rule Increasing Prioritized Patent Application Examinations – On Tuesday, September 3, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office published an interim rule in the Federal Register that expands the availability of prioritized patent application examinations under provisions of the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act (AIA), increasing the amount of requests for prioritized examinations that can be approved within a single fiscal year from 10,000 applications up to 12,000 applications.

Patagonia Trademark Claims Against Anheuser Busch Move Forward – On Tuesday, September 3, U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips of the Central District of California entered an order dismissing a motion to dismiss filed by beer maker Anheuser-Busch, allowing trademark infringement and dilution claims filed by outdoor apparel firm Patagonia against Anheuser-Busch’s Patagonia beer brand to move forward towards trial.

Songwriter Claims Alejandra Guzman Recording of “Loca” Violate Copyright – On Tuesday, September 3, songwriter Myra Stella-Turner filed a complaint alleging copyright infringement in the Southern District of Florida against Universal Music Latin Entertainment for their sale of CDs, DVDs and digital downloads that include a live performance of “Loca” performed by Alejandra Guzman, a well-known Mexican rock artist, during a 2017 world tour.

Ariana Grande Files Copyright, Trademark Suit Against Forever 21 – On Monday, September 2, singer Ariana Grande filed a lawsuit in the Central District of California including claims of trademark and copyright infringement against fashion retailer Forever 21 over a website and social media campaign that allegedly misappropriated Grande’s name, likeness, image and music.

This Week on Wall Street 

Google and Facebook to Face Antitrust Probe from State AGs – On Friday, September 6, The Wall Street Journal reported that a collection of state attorneys general are planning to launch a series of antitrust probes into business practices of American tech giants Google and Facebook.

Goldman Sachs CTO Wiesel Resigns – On Thursday, September 5, news reports indicated that Elisha Wiesel, Chief Technology Officer of Goldman Sachs, was planning to leave his post to pursue philanthropic ventures, creating questions regarding whether the financial giant would continue pushing its technological developments into consumer-led markets.

WeWork CEO Returns $5.9M in Stock Paid for Use of “We” Trademark – On Wednesday, September 4, shared workspace company The We Company filed an amended S-1 statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission informing the agency that WeWork CEO and co-founder Adam Neumann had agreed to return $5.9 million in stock that the company had paid in return for ownership of the “We” family of trademarks.

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