The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has proposed new rules that would effectively end the public’s ability to challenge improperly granted patents at the Patent Office itself. We need EFF supporters to file public comments opposing these rules this week. The USPTO is moving quickly, and staying silent will only help those who profit from abusive patents.
It seems like the US patent system today is rarely anything but a solution to its own problem. In most cases a patent is little more than an expensive troll ward or a way to demonstrate due diligence to investors. What’s taken its place is time to market. If that’s true, the patent system should either be replaced with something that serves its intended purpose or that office should stop accepting applications.