Peer to Patent

Manny Schecter Guest Blogs on IBM Research

Manny Schecter, Associate General Counsel to IBM’s Technology and Intellectual Property organization, highlights key achievements of Peer-to-Patent's Second Year Report on the IBM Research Blog. In the post, he notes the dramatic increase in the amount of business methods and e-commerce applications shifting the industry's outlook on the program from “wait and see” to a more proactive one.  He then highlights the fact that the general public is able and willing to produce meaningful prior art, specifically non-patent literature, while further pointing out that reviewers and examiners have responded favorably to public participation in the patent review process.

The impact of Peer-to-Patent’s potential for Open Government is far reaching. However, the USPTO must review the program after the last applications have completed their review. These next three months will be very important to this public participation model and the impact of reviewer involvement is crucial. Participate in advancing innovation today!

Collaborating Lawyers Launch Law Review

Under the umbrella of the European Legal Network, the world's largest community of lawyers and licensing specialists in the field of free and open source software, the first issue of the International Free and Open Source Law Review (IFOSSLR) was released today.  IFOSSLR is a peer reviewed biannual journal for high-level analysis and debate about Free and Open Source Software legal issues and is published by an independent Editorial Committee.  IFOSSLR is provided free in electronic form.  Paper copies of IFOSSLR may ordered.

Included in the first issue is an article by New York Law School students Chris Wong and Jason Kreps discussion the relationship between Peer-to-Patent and the open source movement.  Chris Wong, a recent graduate of New York Law School, has served as the project manager for Peer-to-Patent since its launch in June 2007, and Jason Kreps has been a member of the project team during the last year while he continues his legal studies.

To read a copy of the press release regarding IFOSSLR, go to http://www.ifosslr.org/ifosslr/announcement/view/1

To read the law review, go to http://www.ifosslr.org/ifosslr

Peer-to-Patent Releases Second Anniversary Report

Peer-to-Patent, recognized by the White House Open Government Initiative as an innovative social networking program, celebrates its second anniversary today. To commemorate this occasion, the Center for Patent Innovations at New York Law School has released the Second Anniversary Report.

The report illustrates the growth that Peer-to-Patent underwent from the first year and details the results from the second year of public collaboration in the patent examination process. As a baseline, the first year data showed that an open network of reviewers could improve the quality of information available to patent examiners.  Furthermore, reviewers are capable of producing information relevant to determining the merit of the claimed inventions. The second year data, expanded on these results by illustrating that Peer-to-Patent reviewers possessed the time and motivation to voluntarily participate as a community in reviewing more patent applications covering broader subject matter.

While Peer-to-Patent gained governmental, national and international notoriety, the USPTO has chosen not to extend the program. We hope that further review of the Second Anniversary Report will provide proof that Citizen Experts are ready to participate in the Open Government Initiative.

To view the report in its entirety, please visit Peer-to-Patent Second Anniversary Report