Wash Post: The Hill to Take on Patent Reform
One bit of worthy news out of Washington is that Congress appears ready to consider addressing the myriad problems in the U.S. patent protection regime. The Washington Post offers a solid summary of the issues and players at hand. As the Post story notes, there are lots of concerned parties involved, especially universities. Yet, the media focus, if not the hearings focus on the Hill, may lean heavily toward patent issues important to big pharma and software.
Look for U.S. Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-VT), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and U.S. Rep. Howard Berman (D-CA), chairman of the House Judiciary Subcommittee covering patent issues, to schedule hearings soon. The Post says bills in both chambers are due to be introduced any day.
For more background, Rep. Berman held a hearing last February on this topic titled “American Innovation at Risk: The Case for Patent Reform.”