News – Patents
New bill to regulate tax on intellectual property transfers
South Africa’s draft Revenue Laws Amendment Bill, released for comment in September, includes provisions designed to increase the difficulty of transferring intellectual property to other countries, especially those with lower tax regimes.
New US patent rules blocked
A preliminary injunction was granted recently against a set of controversial new rules from the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).
US patent law to change drastically
The US House of Representatives recently approved the first major overhaul of US patent law in more than 50 years. Patents will be harder to get, easier to challenge, and penalties for violating them will be reduced.
Insurance needed against insurance patents
The question of patents for non-technical subject matter is once again hitting the headlines in the USA. Bancorp Services LLC is sueing Metropolitan Life Insurance Co. for infringing a patent for a system that administers and tracks the values of insurance policies in separate accounts (U.S. Patent No. 7,249,037). Bancorp filed suit the same day that the patent issued.
Congratulations: William Modisakeng - PhD
Congratulations to William on receiving his PhD in Biochemistry from Rhodes University.