Law360: Biden SEP Injunction Policy Gets Sharply Divided Reaction by Ryan Davis
The Biden administration’s policy statement warning of harm from injunctions based on standard-essential patents has been decried by patent owners and former officials as a threat to innovation and the economy, but praised by tech and auto companies as a needed check on patent abuse.
Nearly 150 public comments had been submitted by Friday, the deadline to weigh in on the draft policy statement addressing the issue. It was unveiled in December by the U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
Among the prominent voices speaking out against the policy were former top officials of those agencies, who said it would “severely tip the scales against SEP holders” and “work great harm to the American innovation economy.” In contrast, Save Our Standards, a group representing major tech companies, called it a “welcome return to a balanced policy” that counters the “immense risk of harm” from injunctions