Innovation Alliance Applauds the Biden-Harris Administration’s Announcement on Standard-Essential Patents
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Innovation Alliance Executive Director Brian Pomper today issued the following statement on the Department of Justice (DOJ), U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) joint announcement on standard-essential patents (SEPs):
“The Innovation Alliance applauds the Biden-Harris Administration’s decision to withdraw all policy statements on standard-essential patents, including the Administration’s flawed draft policy statement released in 2021. This decision to allow courts to determine on a case-by-case basis the proper relief when a SEP has been infringed gets the government out of the business of dictating policy on SEP enforcement and treating SEPs differently from any other patent. Importantly, it makes clear that SEP holders have the right to obtain injunctive relief like any other patent holder when a court determines that is the proper remedy. This is critical to ensuring that our patent system continues to incentivize technological breakthroughs, keeping America at the forefront of global innovation.
“We are pleased that the Administration listened to the many national security experts, current and former government leaders of both parties, academics, inventors and entrepreneurs who warned of the danger of adopting the 2021 draft policy statement. If adopted, that statement would have served only to weaken national security by undermining a critical incentive for U.S. companies to conduct innovative R&D in areas like AI, 5G, and quantum computing, ceding global technological leadership in these key areas to China. In fact, the only groups pushing for the 2021 statement were Big Tech companies seeking to maintain their market dominance by squashing competition from smaller inventors and entrepreneurial businesses, China-based tech companies, and China state-owned enterprises.
“Thankfully, the Biden Administration’s Justice Department, USPTO and NIST have jointly rejected the 2021 draft policy statement and restored a sound policy that will best allow American innovation to thrive.”
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ABOUT THE INNOVATION ALLIANCE
The Innovation Alliance represents innovators, patent owners and stakeholders from a diverse range of industries that believe in the critical importance of maintaining a strong patent system that supports innovative enterprises of all sizes. Innovation Alliance members can be found in large and small communities across the country, helping to fuel the innovation pipeline and drive the 21st century economy. Learn more at www.innovationalliance.net.