Also see: Some Details About How the EPO’s President is Rumoured to be ‘Buying’ Votes and Why It’s Grounds/Basis for “Immediate Dismissal”

Summary: Potential scandal surrounding Jesper Kongstad, Battistelli's protector, explained in light of new information

FOR QUITE some time we have been attempting to get information or retrieve some proof pertaining to the ousting of Jesper Kongstad, the head of the EPO (Organisation, not Office).

“Maybe someone from Denmark can also petition for transparency about this.”“New vacancy at the Danish Patent and Trademark Office,” one person wrote the other day, linking to http://www.altinget.dk/digitalvelfaerd/jobannoncer/erhvervsministeriet-soeger-direktoer-til-patent-og-varemaerkestyrelsen [in Danish]

If someone can translate this for us, we would really appreciate it. We don’t rely on automated translations. Maybe someone from Denmark can also petition for transparency about this. It is, after all, not a private business and transparency in Denmark is often tolerated.

Another comment then said: “The question is how BB [Battistelli] will manage to exploit the unexpected departure of the Chairman of the Administrative Council to his advantage. For example by arguing that “stability” can only be ensured by prolonging his (BB’s) tenure.”

We thought about that as well as the possibility that UPC limbo will be used as some sort of excuse by Battistelli.

“More of the same,” the next comment said, “Battistelli latest abusive proposals to the June Admin Council : sanctions, more sanctions, harsher sanctions against staff… https://www.theregister.co.uk/2017/05/23/euro_patent_office_internal_rule_changes/” (covered here before).

“In interviews with the media Kongstad stated that he had not been paid for these duties.”News from Administrative Council, sent to us while I was away on holiday, shed more light on what had happened. To quote: “J. Kongstad would have had to resign from his position of head of DK IPO (for personal reasons you bet) since Denmark Government would have found out that he was in receipt of EPO funds (quite a lot of money altogether) for a position (Chairman of the Council) that was supposed to be an unpaid one (only travel costs foreseen). If this is true (which would not be surprising) this would explain JK’s support to Battistelli during all these years…”

In interviews with the media Kongstad stated that he had not been paid for these duties. We wrote about that last year. Did Battistelli quietly change this while also rewarding himself with pay rise (for himself and his cronies)? Remember that it’s Kongstad who approves Battistelli’s secret contracts…

To put it quite bluntly, it seems plausible that EPO money is flying off the shelves and all those who pocket this money blindly protect one another. At whose expense? █

Summary: The EUIPO and EPO — with overlaps notwithstanding (including staff intersections at the very top) — revisited in light of reports that reinforce the connection and expect Campinos to become Battistelli’s successor

FOR a number of years German media looked the other way when EPO scandals went on. Recently, however, things have improved somewhat and in the coming days we intend to publish in English and in German (in tandem). We are going to expose a scandal which quite likely implicates the German government, hence maximal impact (in the media/awareness sense) is paramount. We kindly ask readers to contact German journalists/publishers and make them aware of these things; no need to pressure, just a gentle/polite reminder would do. The Croatian media is already writing about these things and watching us closely. The nature of the scandal involves trademarks and the EPO (even though they may seem unrelated).

“The nature of the scandal involves trademarks and the EPO (even though they may seem unrelated).”Germany has various different reasons to sweep these things under the rug. We have written over a dozen articles listing some of these motivations. One of these motivations is the UPC, which Maas definitely wants. Yesterday, in this comment at IP Kat someone brought up the costs of Britain leaving the EU (and the UPC with it), noting: “I wonder how much the UPC court will be…”

Currently, 12 countries have NOT ratified the UPC, but Bristows (part of Team UPC) prefers to spin it all using tiny economies, arguing that “13 countries that have now ratified.” (that’s just about half of the total).

Germany and the UK are not ratifying, so that alone is a fatal barrier. A lot of it is due to EPO scandals, not just EU-related woes.

“Will there be greater alignment between EUIPO and EPO?”A couple more comments from yesterday [1, 2] highlighted a report from Stuttgarter-Zeitung.de (we are guessing that SUEPO might produce a translation soon). “The AC is reportedly looking for someone with “social competence” to lead the EPO,” one of these comments said. There is another German article about this subject and it names Antonio Campinos (as did other publishers in Germany). Is he the next boss of the Office? Will there be greater alignment between EUIPO and EPO? Some people hypothesise that it’s a real possibility. We wrote about that in past years and as recently as last month (more than once). The two ‘agencies’ already do some joint work (e.g. commissioned reports).

Kieren McCarthy, writing from San Francisco yesterday, revisited the EPO scandals yesterday. Under “Sorry, psycho bosses, it’s not OK to keylog your employees” he mentioned Battistelli as follows, in light of the latest legal developments in Germany:

All of which is bad news for psycho bosses. It is, however, unlikely to impact one of the most recent high-profile cases of keylogging software on employees’ computers – at the European Patent Office (EPO) in Munich – even though that installation was done secretly by a special investigation force set up by EPO president Benoît Battistelli.

Why? Because the EPO claims it is not beholden to any national laws, given its status as an international organization.

None of that would change under Campinos, whose immunity is already a subject of controversy.

“None of that would change under Campinos, whose immunity is already a subject of controversy.”One last comment said that “at least Battistelli still gets to order the most expensive plonk in exclusive restaurants in Brussels …”

Is Campinos about to get Battistelli's penthouse? Maybe the excessive (waste of money) bodyguards too? We’re not too sure, but whoever succeeds Battistelli will inherit one heck of a mess. We’ll say more about that in our next post. █

“Science is facts; just as houses are made of stones, so is science made of facts; but a pile of stones is not a house and a collection of facts is not necessarily science.”

–Henri Poincare

Summary: António Campinos, who is rumoured to be Benoît Battistelli’s most likely successor, is also rumoured to be French

THE management of the EPO is already ‘stuffed’ (or stacked) with French people. We wrote many articles about it and EPO staff representation complained about it as well. It’s not a subjective view as it’s rather trivial to simply look at the organisational structure/chart and annotate it with nationalities. This, to a large degree, is Battistelli’s fault. He brought in many former colleagues of his (nepotism).

Alain Pompidou, whom we wrote a lot about in 2015, was the “fourth president of the European Patent Office (EPO) from July 1, 2004 to June 30, 2007,” as Wikipedia puts it. He too was French. To his credit, he did have background in science (professor of histology, embryology and cytogenetics).

António Campinos, whom we wrote a lot about in 2016 (when he was rumoured to be Battistelli’s replacement), may also be French.

“António Campinos, whom we wrote a lot about in 2016 (when he was rumoured to be Battistelli’s replacement), may also be French.”Rumours have spread inside the Office that Campinos has so-called ‘dual’ citizenship, i.e. Portuguese and French (his mother is apparently French). His full name is António Serge De Pinho CAMPINOS (notice the capitals, French style as some publications have put it) and he is formally Portuguese, “although he was born in France,” James Nurton wrote back in October 2010 (we mentioned this last year; we had looked at his background beforehand). He also studied in the University of Montpellier, France (Law Degree, 1991; Master Degree in Public Law, 1994). There’s also the University European Centre, Nancy, France (Post-graduation in European High Studies, 1992), according to his CV. So he speaks French. He is in his late forties, i.e. two decades younger than Battistelli.

If Campinos becomes the next EPO President, that will be 3 French people in charge out of 4 in succession (Brimelow being the exception as she’s a Brit).

How very diverse an office. The EPO produced some puff pieces to that effect about a year ago. It’s a lie. Even insiders complained (at the time) that it was a lie. █

Summary: The rumoured clandestine ownership of Croatia Airlines by Lufthansa (as discussed already in Croatian media)

THIS multi-part series has thus far shown conflicts of interest aplenty (see part 1, part 2, part 3 and part 4 if new to this series). We covered the role played by Andrej Matijević and Željko Topić (EPO) in Lufthansa favourism and in the previous part we showed the connections of Tena Mišetić and Ivan Mišetić (also Lufthansa).

Let us not forget that a conflict of interest is the precursor to corruption. The opaque symbiosis between Croatia Airlines and Lufthansa (annexed article #15), whose links are graphically illustrated by Ivan Mišetić, opens the door to speculation and openly voiced suspicions about Lufthansa’s clandestine ownership of the Croatian airline as reported in the media in Zagreb and beyond.

But let us return to the main protagonists in the corruption affair surrounding the company Lufthansa Airplus Servicenkarten GmbH, headquartered in Neu-Isenburg, Germany. In the annexes of this article, we provide exclusive information on the company’s ownership structure (annexed document #5). As can be seen in this figure, the registered capital of the Lufthansa subsidiary is 10 million Euros. The founders are the companies Bavaria Equity Solutions GmbH from Munich and Lufthansa Commercial Holding GmbH from Cologne. The annexed document is dated 14 July 2008 and was signed by Messrs. Patrick Diemer and Klaus Busch. The latest data from the Deutsche Börse (XETRA) for the company Lufthansa AG is also provided (annexed exhibits #6 & #7).

Wir möchten daran erinnern, daß der Interessenkonflikt Vestibüll der Korruption ist. Diese nicht transparente Symbiose zwischen Croatia Airlines und Lufthansa (#15), welche bildhaft Ivan Mišetić verbunden hat, öffnet die Möglichkeit für Spekulationen und offene Verdachte über verheimlichtes Eigentum der Lufthansa an kroatischer Luftgesellschaft und worüber Medien in Zagreb und breiter berichtet haben.

Nun denn, kehren wir zurück zu den Hauptakteuren in der Korruptionsaffäre rund um die angezeigte Firma Lufthansa Airplus Servicenkarten GmbH mit Sitz in Neu-Isenburg in Deutschland. Im Anhang dieses Textes bringen wir exklusive Informationen zu der Inhaberstruktur dieser Firma (#5). Wie man darin erkennen kann, beträgt das Grundkapital der Lufthansa’s Firma 10 Millionen Euro. Die Gründer sind die Firmen Bavaria Equity Solutions GmbH aus München und Lufthansa Commercial Holding GmbH aus Köln. Das beigelegte Dokument stammt vom 14. Juli 2008 und wurde von den Herren Patrick Diemer und Klaus Busch unterzeichnet. In festen Händen auch die neuesten Daten zu bringen mit der Deutschen Börse (XETRA) für Unternehmen Lufthansa AG (#6 & #7). █

Document #15

Exhibit #5

Exhibit #6

Article #15

Succession or appointment?

Reference: Order of succession

Summary: Selection procedures for next EPO President, according to the latest rumours, are hardly even selection procedures but a mere appointment

The German media says that António Campinos is the likely successor of Battistelli at the EPO. Campinos is believed to be French, for reasons we explained at the beginning of this month [1, 2].

“From our understanding (although we could never verify this), Jesper Kongstad is leaving next month because his government told him to. He’s also leaving the DKPTO.”“According to inside sources at the EPO,” somebody told us, “there is currently only one valid application for the position of EPO President. This application reportedly comes from Senhor Campinos.” (Or should that be Monsieur Campinos?)

Everyone refers to him as Portuguese, but he spent a lot of his life in France and most likely holds a French passport.

“The official job specification requires candidates to have nationality of at least one contracting state,” we’re told, “along with official confirmation of that state’s support.”

From the EPO’s own site (epo.org link): “The complete application files of the candidates must be sent to the Council Secretariat to arrive by 14 September 2017 (date of receipt by the Secretariat). They must be submitted in one of the Organisation’s official languages. They must include a curriculum vitae showing nationality of at least one contracting state, official confirmation of that state’s support, and a letter of motivation.”

So it helps to be well connected politically. From our understanding (although we could never verify this), Jesper Kongstad is leaving next month because his government told him to. He’s also leaving the DKPTO. This might render him unemployed for a while — something he’s not quite accustomed to because he’s somewhat of a workaholic, based on an interview from some years ago.

“From what is known,” we’ve learned, “Campinos is the only candidate so far who has the support of a contracting state (which is assumed to be Portugal rather than France although the questions about his alleged dual nationality have never been clarified).

“…there is currently only one valid application for the position of EPO President. This application reportedly comes from Senhor Campinos.”
      –Anonymous“It is rumoured that other candidates have applied but that they failed to secure the support of their state (possibly due to political interference by the pro-Campinos lobby whose main cheerleader is said to be none other than Battistelli himself). However no information about the identities of other applicants is available.

“The closing date is 14 September so there is still time for other candidates to apply.”

“There are rumours that a group of states opposed to Battistelli may try to mount a last minute effort to push an alternative candidate but again there is no specific information about this or who the candidate might be.

“There are rumours that a group of states opposed to Battistelli may try to mount a last minute effort to push an alternative candidate but again there is no specific information about this or who the candidate might be.”
      –Anonymous“It should become clear by the October meeting of the Administrative Council whether there is going to be a genuine open competition for the position or whether the succession has already been decided in advance by means of wheeling and dealing in smoke-filled backrooms.”

This is so typical. Remember the story of Brimelow’s departure and what she wrote amid her departure. Some speculated that Battistelli bullied her out to secure his very long and destructive tenure (after he had already served as Chairman of the Administrative Council).

If António Campinos does leave the EU-IPO in order to join the EPO, will that make a former EPO man, Christian Archambeau, potentially the new head of EU-IPO? Cross-pollination? Patricia García-Escudero Márquez is already there in the Management Board of EU-IPO while also serving as Battistelli's 'chinchilla' on the Boards of Appeal Committee. █

Don’t mess with the École

Reference: Order of succession

Summary: António Campinos is quite likely the next EPO President, as insiders suspect that many applications for the job got rejected politically (turned down by political mischief)

THE German media believes that António Campinos will be the next head of the EPO (the Office, not the Organisation, whose Chairman will leave one week from now). Campinos is believed to be French, for reasons we explained before [1, 2], and he is close to Battistelli. Insiders suspect that Battistelli is already paving the way for Campinos to ‘win’ the job, as we previously explained in:

1. It’s a Family Business: French Succession Plan at EPO After Battistelli’s Departure
2. One Week Left for Battistelli’s Coronation of Another Frenchman, António Campinos, to Lobby for UPC?
3. Rumours That Another Frenchman is the Only Candidate to Succeed Benoît Battistelli at the EPO

Imagine having 3 French Presidents (out of 4) in succession! Never mind the fact that much of the remaining management, dubbed Team Battistelli, is also French. What a coup! (French word)

“Insiders suspect that Battistelli is already paving the way for Campinos to ‘win’ the job”“According to sources close to the action,” one reader told us, “there are only two valid applications for the position of EPO President. One of these comes from Campinos as long suspected. The other is not yet clear but may be announced by the Administrative Council in October.

“It is rumoured that there were actually a lot of applications but most of the aspiring candidates did not secure the necessary approval of their home state.

“Imagine having 3 French Presidents (out of 4) in succession!”“What is not clear is whether the withholding of support for these applications was the result of an official high-level decision by the competent ministry or whether the Council delegations were manipulated by Battistelli to withhold support without referring the matter to their ministries.

“If Battistelli had in fact influenced the national delegations and manipulated them into blocking potential candidates then this could be a major political scandal. The Council delegates are ultimately answerable to their national governments via the supervising ministries and not to the EPO President.

“Given the lack of transparency at the EPO, it is unlikely that anybody will ever manage to uncover the real story about what is going in behind the scenes.”

“Public scrutiny is sorely needed (at the very least for justice) as lack of transparency at the EPO facilitates much mischief.”We were also barely able to verify claims that Jesper Kongstad had gotten pushed out (sacked) by his government. He is leaving next week (also his job at the DKPTO).

“At this stage,” our reader continued, “it seems almost certain that Campinos will be anointed as Battistelli’s successor in October or at the latest by December.”

If anyone out there has any additional information, please get in touch with us. Public scrutiny is sorely needed (at the very least for justice) as lack of transparency at the EPO facilitates much mischief. ILO ‘politics’ are also of interest to us.

We have another series coming soon. It will be focused on Battistelli with his string-pulling skills. He is, after all, a politician. █

It seems like the bunch below will indeed govern the Board of Appeal, Office etc.

Summary: Battistelli’s ‘Club Med’ vision is reportedly becoming a reality

THERE’S no major surprise here. We saw that coming and expected that based on rumours from the inside.

Well, published earlier today (in German) by Mathieu Klos and Christina Schulze, who are familiar with EPO affairs (and scandals), is an article about today’s meeting.

“The headline suggests he would be chosen to become the EPO President, but there’s still no official confirmation of it.”Battistelli’s successor, according to them, is EUIPO’s chief Campinos. The headline suggests he would be chosen to become the EPO President, but there’s still no official confirmation of it.

As one anonymous insider put it: “If confirmed, this would be disastrous news for the staff, the Board of Appeal and ultimately the whole patent community.”

For background to this, see the following series:

• Battistelli’s Club Med at the EPO – Part I: EPO Validation Agreement With Angola
• Battistelli’s Club Med at the EPO – Part II: António Campinos, Benoît Battistelli and the Angolan Connection
• Battistelli’s Club Med at the EPO – Part III: Angola and the Portuguese “Laundromat”
• Battistelli’s Club Med at the EPO – Part IV: The Angolan Patent Office (IAPI) Seems Almost Defunct
• Battistelli’s Club Med at the EPO – Part V: Portugal’s “Golden Visa” Scheme for Angolan Nationals
• Battistelli’s Club Med at the EPO – Part VI: “When Corruption Rules” in Portugal – Operation Marquês
• Battistelli’s Club Med at the EPO – Part VII: Quo Vadis EPO?
• Battistelli’s Club Med at the EPO – Part VIII: Summary and Photos of Battistelli’s Club Med

Got any tips/information? Maybe photos from this afternoon's EPO protest? Please let us know; send us information anonymously. █

Each time a software patent gets granted a kitten/puppy will die

Summary: As virtually every court ruling in the US is against software patents (more so at higher courts) the US patent office accepts that it can no longer issue such patents, according to rumours/gossip

PATENT BUDDY, a huge proponent of software patents, wrote the other day what s/he labeled “USPTO GOSSIP”. Given everything we know and have been writing about the USPTO, it seems very plausible. Now that high courts invalidate just about every software patent that lands on their lap it’s about time for USPTO to adapt and stop issuing these.

“The USPTO merely embarrasses itself if it keeps issuing patents which it knows for sure courts would reject (sometimes PTAB rejects these also, once it gets petitioned).”“We are hearing from multiple [USPTO] examiners that they are to reject virtually all computer-implemented inventions under 101,” says the gossip.

It’s about time! If true…

The USPTO merely embarrasses itself if it keeps issuing patents which it knows for sure courts would reject (sometimes PTAB rejects these also, once it gets petitioned).

Does anyone else know anything about it? Can documents related to this be shared with us? It’s not likely that the patent microcosm would want to publicise such a thing as it would scare their clients away.

“The patent trolls’ lobbyists/voices try to paint what Supreme Court Justices did in 2014 as against the law. It’s their latest miserable strategy, which we first noted and wrote about last weekend.”The Supreme Court was very clear; no software patents. Alice remains without challenge for 3.5 years (so far) and as we’ll show in a later article, Watchtroll lobbies hard to put an end to that. The patent trolls’ lobbyists/voices try to paint what Supreme Court Justices did in 2014 as against the law. It’s their latest miserable strategy, which we first noted and wrote about last weekend.

Here. again, comes the spinner in chief. He attempts to frame the Justices as against patent law. “In her decision,” he wrote, “Judge Huff granted Plaintiffs Rule 12(c) motions for judgment on the pleadings – ruling that all claims of the five asserted patents were invalid for claiming ineligible subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.”

Yes, as usual. It’s worth noting that this has become so routine a judgment that it’s almost boring. █

Summary: Rumours regarding Battistelli and his political career in Saint Germain en Lay, which not only raises questions about his eligibility for EPO presidency but also about his true intentions (Sarkozy is said to have helped put him in charge of the EPO, with billions of euros and minimal financial transparency [1, 2])

SOME years ago we became aware that quite a few (if not many) former employees of the EPO — not just current employees — read this site. They rightly worry about their pension, seeing how quickly Battistelli rubbishes their past employer (with a famous promise of a generous pension). As is widely known internally, EPO pensions have been subjected to ‘clawbacks’ under Battistelli. We covered this before and we intend to speak more about it in the coming days/weeks/months. The matter may mostly concern EPO staff (more so than stakeholders), but it still needs airing. There’s a lot to be learned from it regarding European/French politics. ‘Liabilities’ to staff are being systematically and pro-actively cut.

We would like to start a series of overnight posts with the following message, which appears to have come from an EPO insider. To quote:

let me share with you some thoughts about the EPO. In a past article there was a reference to a comment posted by an insider about the objectives set by Dr.(h.c) Battistelli and the respective achievements. I cannot find the comment but the objectives were in substance dismantling the union (done), reducing sickness and invalidity (done) and the last point was a reform of the pension system which has not occurred so far at least not for the personal in place for decades.

This comment has kept my mind busy with some results. A reform of the pensions “a la systeme Battistelli” is likely to be extremely unpopular. But there is still one way to implement a last unpopular measure and the would be just before Dr (h.c.) Battistelli leaves the office, therefore, leaving the consequences to his successor who couldn’t be blame for what DR. (hc) Battistelli did. His last action would be a kind of “flipping the staff the bird” a last time. But this is not enough, in the last years Dr.(h.c.) Battistelli has accustomed us to show his finger therefore that wouldn’t be spectacular. I believe there is something bigger on its way.

Remember Dr.(h.c.) Battistelli requested recently the full access to ALL EPO bank accounts? Remember there is somewhere a colossal amount of money called Pension Reserve Fund (PRF), afaik about 8 billions?

Do you really believe that Dr.(h.c.) Battistelli is going to return to Saint Germain en Lay to be a city Councillor in charge of culture, thus just dedicated to bully the local theatre troupe, after 10 years as a dictator in Eponia? How naive!!

The Corsican Dr.(h.c.) Battistelli wants the full access to the 8 billions for himself and for his accomplices. I guess that this was the ultimate purpose of sacking the EPO.

By the way, this was picked in the news this morning: “City councilman shot dead in Soccia (Corsica)”
http://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/corse/corse-du-sud/conseiller-municipal-tue-balle-soccia-1359911.html

But it has nothing to do with Dr. (h.c.) Battistelli at first glance. Hasn’t it? Or could the news be used to keep the bodyguards after retirement?

“Social idiocracy,” said the followup message, can also be seen in French media. To quote:

More about Dr. h.g. Battistelli “Benoit BATTISTELLI, Maire-adjoint chargé de la Culture”. Maire-adjoint translates deputy mayor.

https://www.saintgermainenlaye.fr/648-7/ficheAnnu/benoit-battistelli.htm

and here more, when the social democracy strikes in Saint Germain en Laye. Unbelievable there is in this town an association named “workshop for environment and democracy” Guess who is presiding the association. Yesssss. LOL: Benoit Battistelli!

http://lesateliers.typepad.fr/

We recently wrote about this in light of reports from France. Taking the eyes off Battistelli’s ball would be unwise, knowing what he and his political associates have been caught doing. Here are some past articles:

• New EPO Rumours About Benoît Battistelli’s Potential Role in the Bygmalion Affair
• The Battistelli Mafia and Corsica
• A “Perfect Recipe for Fraud” at the European Patent Office (EPO)
• Speaking of “Social Democracy” While Suffering Extreme Democratic Deficiency

Any more input on this (from readers) would be greatly appreciated. █

Would you trust this man near judges?

Summary: Benoît Battistelli, who openly disregards and refuses to obey judges (while intervening in trials and delivering ‘royal decrees’ whenever it suits him), may soon gain direct control over the judge he hates most

THE EPO is in shambles and we welcome Dr. Thorsten Bausch’s criticism of this whole situation. If only more of his colleagues and others in his professional domain found the courage to speak out…

Yesterday Bausch published “Quo usque tandem, Battistelle,” soon to be recommended or at least also cited by JUVE’s Mathieu Klos‏ and Dr. Luke McDonagh, who wrote (and cited the Irish Times along with Bausch’s post): “The European #Patent Office’s labour practices have become incredibly controversial: of interest to the #ECHR (via a complaint made against the Netherlands by its trade union) and the International Labour Organisation (#ILO)…”

Nobody is happy about it. We saw one personal attack on a dismissed staff representative (the typical pretense that EPO staff is rich and spoiled), but everything else is very unflattering to Battistelli and the EPO. Bausch said that Battistelli “is a powerful person, no doubt. But he is not above the law, and he should not be. It must be possible that courts or tribunals set limits to his powers and at times even vacate decisions that he has made. The same is true for the Administrative Council. Both the President and the AC are bound by the European Patent Convention, which has to be interpreted, as the case may be, by an independent court or tribunal.”

More from his article:

If a recent report by JuVe is correct – and they are normally well informed – then Mr. Corcoran has not only won his cases before the ILO, but also before the Regional Court of Munich and the Office of the State Prosecutor in Munich. This is at least what Mr. Corcoran’s attorney told JuVe: “Denn durch die beiden ILOAT-Urteile und diverse Entscheidungen des Landgerichts München und der Staatsanwaltschaft München wurde nun von dritter Seite zweifelsfrei bestätigt, dass die Vorwürfe von Herrn Battistelli gegen meinen Mandanten unbegründet sind” (in English: “The two ILOAT judgments and several decisions of the Regional Court of Munich and the State Prosecutor of Munich have confirmed without any doubt that Mr. Battistelli’s accusations against my client are unfounded.”) – If the EPO has different facts to report, then let us hear them. Otherwise I hope that the decisions by the Munich court will become public some day. They could be interesting.

In any case, the plot seems to thicken. Maybe Mr. Battistelli is really a case for „Krampus“. If he does not change course now and if he continues refusing to do what the ILO ordered the EPO to do, he should be sacked. Otherwise, the Administrative Council risks a serious loss in reputation of the European Patent Office, and I cannot imagine that the German Federal Constitutional Court would firmly close its eyes to such a breach of the constitution and the EPC. Let it not be forgotten that the rule of law is the fundament of the EPO member states’ constitutions and the European patent system as a whole.

And, ceterum censeo, dear Administrative Council, please finally fill the gaps in the technical members of the Boards of Appeal! There are still more than 20 unoccupied positions shown in the business distribution scheme and the duration of appeal proceedings has become truly unbearable.

Someone in the comments then pointed out, correctly, that “ILO decisions in re Judge Corcoran probably mark the beginning of Mr Battistelli´s end.”

To quote:

The recent ILO decisions in re Judge Corcoran probably mark the beginning of Mr Battistelli´s end.
A number of cases of harassement and violations of fundamental rights by him and his minions against various victims are still pending before the Tribunal of the ILO, which expressly justified the extraordinary public announcement last Wednesday by the fact that it would apply the very same considerations in several decisions to come.
The decisions also illustrate how Mr Battistelli made a fool of the AC, bringing both the EPO and the UPC to a point of rupture, with disastrous consequences to be expected from the pending constitutional complaints before the GCC.
Any new proposal from Mr Battistelli in his last months of service is therefore likely to be dumped immediately by the AC.
And once he will have lost power, influence and intimidation capacity, expect dozens of new stories and scandals to emerge. Has he for example really got the Chair of the CEIPI Board tby virtue of his outstanding legal knowledge and brilliant achievements in intellectual property matters rather than perhaps by massively threatening the CEIPI to put a brutal end to EPO´s cooperation and substantial financial support, if he was not elected?

We wrote about CEIPI in the following posts:

• Benoît Battistelli and António Campinos Playing Musical Chairs at CEIPI
• How CEIPI in Strasbourg is Allegedly Facilitating Another Battistelli ‘Scam’ Surrounding the Unitary Patent (UPC)
• French Disgrace: Teachers at CEIPI Not Happy About Benoît Battistelli as Upcoming President of the CEIPI Administrative Board
• The EPO Relies on Media Cowardice and Complicity (to Not Report Obvious Issues With Battistelli at CEIPI)
• Another Day of EPO Injustices in Europe and Campinos/Battistelli Connections at CEIPI
• CEIPI and EPO: The Story So Far

Teachers at CEIPI were complaining about Battistelli’s appointment before they even knew about the ILO judgments.

Thorsten Bausch told the above commenter: “Then let us just hope that this reinstatement will also be accepted by the President of the EPO, not just the President of the Boards of Appeal. If so, it would be good news for the rule of law.”

Battistelli and the Office, as we've just noted, have said nothing whatsoever about it. Only Carl Josefsson did.

But mind the next comment, which adds new information/speculation (highlighted in yellow below):

Mr Corcoran was today in Haar (DG3) but it is still unclear whether he can enter other EPO premises (eg Isar, Pschorr Höffe)

I just heard from usually well informed sources that the plan is to now let Mr Corcoran in DG3 until 31.12.2017 and from 01.01.2018 to have in [sic] (him?) back in DG1 under Battistelli !

Suspended 3 years, charges with nothing, a professional life and a reputation totally destroyed by a system incapable to acknowledge its own mistakes plus, cherry on the cake, the brilliant demonstration of the “independence” of the DG3 : Merry Xmas Mr Battistelli !

Can anybody verify/confirm the highlighted text above? We do need independent verification.

Over at The Register many of the comments are not on topic (as usual), but here’s one that is:

Does the ILO’s court have the ability to hand out contempt of court rulings and fines?

Does the ILO’s court have the ability to hand out contempt of court rulings, fines and to jail those individual persons who ignore or unduly delay enacting its rulings? You know, like real courts can do.
If so, then now is the time it is the time for the ILO’s court to start putting individual people in jail until the obey its rulings.
Benoit Battistelli
Benoit Battistelli’s blindly obedient servant, the head of the EPO’s security*
And if that doesn’t do it, then next week the EPO’s executive committee
* Since when did, “I’m just doing what my boss told me to do” justify refusing to obey a court order?

See this reply:

I thought the procedure was that the recipient of the decision could go to the national court to enforce it. In that case the immunity of the organisation would not apply. I could be wrong. Of course the EPO has won a case before the Dutch Supreme Court which was partly based on the EPO’s recognition of the ILO as being a legitimate source of justice for the staff (contrary to the staff’s assertion to the practical application of the right). Failure to apply the ILO decision could well bring that decision back to the table, particularly as the staff Union is currently appealing it to the higher European court for human rights. Ultimately it may rely on the national government (Germany, country of the EPO Chairman) taking steps with regard to the immunity. A ridiculous diplomatic conflict may ensue?
For the want of a nail…

It is going to be interesting to see the ramifications/knock-on effect at ECHR.

Some of the comments are even less polite and suggest law enforcement ought to get involved:

The guy should turn up with a couple of friendly policemen in tow and the minute he is refused access, the police should arrest and handcuff anyone who stops the guy.

Start with the security oik and when he says he has been told to do it, go arrest the person who issued the instruction. Cart them off to a holding cell and remind them that if they repeat it, then they will be arrested again.
Proceed ad finitum until the cops run out of handcuffs and the organisation gets the hnt.

Imagine that. And read the reply:

Except… the EPO buildings are inviolable so any police raid would lead to a call from the EPO to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for back-up. Could lead to a stand-off. And don’t forget BB has personal bodyguards.

Insiders have told us they believe things will get nasty pretty soon. It’s also hard to believe that Corcoran under direct control of Battistelli (and his circle) will be in safe hands. We’re less optimistic than SUEPO and deem Campinos to be an extension of Battistelli’s “circle” (or “swamp” as they nowadays call it across the pond). █

Related (last year):

• Technicolor, Having Turned Into a Patent Troll, Attacks Android/Tizen/Linux With Patents in Europe
• Trolls-Connected Rovi, TiVo, Hulu and Technicolor Continue to Make Broadcast a Sordid Maze of Software Patents
• The 20% Rule: Patent Trolling Suffers Double-Digit Declines and Patent Troll Technicolor is Collapsing

Summary: Connections between various patent trolls and some patent troll statistics which have been circulated lately

THE patent trolls epidemic is no longer just a US-centric epidemic; China is feeling it too, having tactlessly embraced patent maximalism (in itself an epidemic of the mind) like the USPTO did.

It’s not hard to tell what a patent troll is; it’s usually obvious if some entity has some services/products. Entities that are practicing have things to show. They advertise these as they attempt to make sales, transactions etc.

Well, days (or even less than days) after this promotional piece of his, Dr. Mark Summerfield softened the image of patent trolls by citing and quoting the world’s largest troll, Intellectual Ventures. It’s pretty obvious that Intellectual Ventures never had any products; it was never the intention. It’s not even a broker as its main activity is suing, usually via plenty of proxies. Intellectual Ventures is as evil as can be. But Summerfield’s piece isn’t whitewashing the troll; instead, it sheds lights on some statistics from Lex Machina:

Lex Machina’s analysis shows that since the commencement of the US patent law reforms introduced by the America Invents Act (AIA), rates of patent litigation have been in steady decline in real terms. Furthermore, while the list of top plaintiffs remains dominated by non-practising entities (NPEs), in 2017 two pharmaceutical companies entered the top ten, with two more filling out the top 15. And while headlines tend to be captured by a small number of very high awards of damages against big infringers, the reality for most plaintiffs is sobering. Just 11% of all cases terminated since 2000 reached a final judgment, with around three-quarters settling. While patentees are victorious slightly more often than defendants (around 60/40), compensatory damages are awarded in less than half of the cases won by plaintiffs, and for those cases in which ‘reasonable royalty’ damages were awarded during the three years up until the end of 2017, the median amount was just US$4.4 million – perhaps barely enough to justify litigation in a jurisdiction where the usual rule is that each party must bear its own costs of the proceedings.

We have been writing about trolls and documenting their actions for a very long time. For over a decade we’ve been pointing out that Intellectual Ventures works for Microsoft and Finjan, another troll, is backed by Microsoft. It’s even publicly-traded, albeit its stock tanked over the years (yesterday, however, financial media took interest in the stock [1, 2, 3). According to IAM, another publicly-traded troll may soon purchase another. As IAM has just put it: “InterDigital due to release its FY17 results on 22nd February. Will it also announce Technicolor purchase? https://globenewswire.com/news-release/2018/01/30/1314295/0/en/InterDigital-Announces-Date-for-Fourth-Quarter-and-Full-Year-2017-Financial-Results.html […] Technicolor announced in December that it was in advanced stage of talks about a sale with an unnamed entity.”

We wrote a lot about both of these. Technicolor, unlike InterDigital, used to be an actual company rather than a troll. But now it seems like both of them are just trolls and one may soon collapse onto the other. █

While Team Battistelli gives itself major bonuses

Just don’t mention anything about luxury cars of top-level management or bars built secretly at the 10th floor (among other ludicrous spendings on media influence, Eurovision-type festivals, plenty of personal bodyguards and so on)

Summary: While the Administrative Council of the EPO praises Battistelli for his financial accomplishments (as laughable as it may seem) a lot of families stuck in a foreign country may soon see their breadwinner unemployed, according to rumours

THE EPO is in trouble/peril; insiders started to insinuate that something wrong and very major was brewing at the Office yesterday. We’ve waited long enough and we now hear it from multiple sources. So here it goes.

“According to rumours heard at the EPO’s canteen,” one source told us, “the EPO seems to be planning dismissals of 700 to 1000 employees.”

“If they have as much money as they claim, why would the Office shrink this much?”This does not surprise us. We wrote about layoffs just earlier this week and many imminent changes seem to be hinting at that. Battistelli is just planting the seeds of catastrophe, which no doubt already causes super-hard-working examiners to panic.

Now that we hear these things we can’t help but recall some recent comments. One such comment said that “the only bells to which the Administrative Council of the EPO usually reacts to are the cash register bells operated by Mr. Battistelli.”

What cash register?

If they have as much money as they claim, why would the Office shrink this much? This is unprecedented; the Office grew over time rather than shrink.

Here is another interesting new comment:

” If the Freie Wähler stand up and file a pretty sensible and non-ideological resolution like this one, then I would not be surprised if it will actually be passed by the state parliament on 20/2/2018.”

Dear Dr. Bausch, far be it from me to question your optimism about Bavarian democracy.
But I wouldn’t count on the motion passing if the CSU gets its way.

But I suggest that you take a look at the contribution from Mr. Taubeneder (CSU) during the last debate on EPO affairs back in March 2017:

https://www1.bayern.landtag.de/www/player/index.html?playlist=https://www1.bayern.landtag.de/lisp/res/metafiles/wp17/17_346/meta_vod_24176.json&startId=

Maybe it is just me, but he gives the impression of singing off the same hymn sheet as the EPO management.
It would not surprise me if the EPO PR department wrote the speech for him.

We wrote about that at the time. People said the same thing to us (that the EPO seems to be ‘operating’ some politicians behind the scenes).

Thorsten Bausch responded by noting that he “heard that today’s [yesterday's] session was postponed to March due to sickness of Ms. Schmidt.”

Schmidt is a key figure in all this. Fantastic politician.

“As to your comments about Mr. Taubeneder,” Bausch continued, “you may indeed be right. Some of the language he used was clearly not his own (but the same is true for Ms. Schmidt, to be fair). Mr. Taubeneder’s main argument in 2017 was that the Bavarian Parliament is not competent to judge about such matters, which are in the very capable hands of the Administrative Council (sarcasm added by me, but not much). If I were Mr. Taubeneder or any of his CSU fellows, I would rather argue that it is the failure of the SPD-led Federal Ministry of Justice to apply more pressure on the Administrative Council to change things at the EPO to the better.”

Where is the German state when all these abuses are happening, culminating in the likely dismissal of many public servants living and working abroad with their families? Can the sessions wait another month?

Here is another new comment from another thread. This one too is about the supine Administrative Council:

Introducing the provision to “terminate the service of an employee if the exigencies of the service require abolition of their post or a reduction in staff” looks like a classic (“dead cat”) strategy from the EPO management.

Getting feedback that nobody likes the proposal to change to 5 year contracts? Starting to worry that the proposal might not be passed? No problem, we have the answer for you: just introduce a proposal that is far more outrageous an objectionable and then everyone will expend their energy and time fighting that instead.

So here’s my prediction: unless the AC has become completely supine, the “dead cat” proposal will draw objections, at which point the EPO management (with a theatrical show of exasperation and reluctance) will agree to withdraw it, but only if the AC agrees to rubber-stamp all of the other proposals (including the expansion of 5-year contracts).

It will be interesting to see how accurate this prediction turns out to be.

If the rumours are true, it all makes sense now. And as a followup comment put it: “Our salaries at the USPTO are even more competitive than the EPO’s [...] Conclusion: the overall better employment conditions at the USPTO allows USPTO examiners to provide much higher quality than that provided by the EPO. Hence, applicants would be better advised to file first in the US to get value for money…”

It’s hardly surprising that under Battistelli, e.g. last year, the number of patent applications (for EPs) actually fell slightly. Battistelli doomed the Office. Whether it was intentional or not (UPC in mind) we’ll let readers decide.

The demise of the EPO threatens Europe’s competitiveness. One might say, “so they’ll turn to NPOs…”

Well, not necessarily. Some people now go abroad for their patents.

As a side note, earlier this month EPLAW wrote about the ‘Drum Unit’ case that relates to the NPO:

With its milestone ‘Drum Unit’ decision, the German Federal Supreme Court revisits its case law on the exhaustion of patent rights, and in particular, on the delimitation of ‘permissible use’ on the one hand and the ‘unlawful (re-)making’ of a patented product on the other.

What would exhaustion of a patent office itself mean to stakeholders? Has it ever happened?

We have, on numerous occasions, been told that an EPO career should be lifelong because finding a job after the EPO is hard (there are several different reasons for this). It pains us to think that many EPO workers, some of whom were supportive of us over the years, are not in a state of shock if not additional stress (as it things weren’t already stressful enough). █

Summary: Similarities between appointments at the EPO and the USPTO; it’s also time to prepare for a lot of EPO lies next week (about the performance of the Office in 2017)

THE PRESIDENT of the EPO has been almost invisible lately (recent weeks). The new Director of the USPTO has said barely a word before and after taking Office. Both are scheduled to appear in some distant IAM event, but that’s about it.

The USPTO, according to rumours we heard before, has an EPO-type scandal. It may be part of several, but we never managed to attract hard evidence of it (like evidence we have about the EPO).

“The USPTO, according to rumours we heard before, has an EPO-type scandal.”A couple of years ago and again a couple of months ago we wrote about the CIO of the EPO [1, 2] in addition to the connection to Battistelli.

Two days ago a Twitter account called CIO_Watchdog (“USPTO CIO Watchdog”) wrote: “PTO CIO management is hot water again as rumors, stating Pam Isom allegedly, hired her nephew by marriage? We have received countless communication on this subject, and hopefully the new Dir will resolve as it effects morale. You might recall the Chiles saga. PTO has a history…”

Just to be clear, this is not a prank account as some people close to the USPTO are retweeting it. They know the above-mentioned names. It may be like a whistleblower (insider) account.

“Last year the EPO intentionally omitted all the negatives (we wrote many articles about that) and concealed that fact that EPO patent applications had overall declined in number.”This may get interesting in the near future. We heard similar things before (about USPTO irregularities and also nepotism), but there have been no whistleblowers. If some whistleblowers out there wish to send us information and material, we’re all ears. We have never compromised a source since we started 12 years ago.

As a side note about the EPO, its Twitter account says almost nothing of interest. It’s mostly repeating old tweets (like they’re shelved templates reused). But yesterday it wrote :”What was 2017 like for patents and the EPO? Find out in one week when we publish our annual report!”

We are ready to have a closer look at it when it’s out. Last year the EPO intentionally omitted all the negatives (we wrote many articles about that) and concealed that fact that EPO patent applications had overall declined in number.

“Backlog is drying up fast, rendering them redundant.”Several months ago Battistelli lowered some fees and repeatedly advertised this ‘discount’, hoping perhaps to hide the decline in patent applications. So we’re ready to take that into account (one can measure patent applications in terms of revenue rather than number).

Last night the EPO did something rather amusing. It published this news item (warning: epo.org link) titled “Validation agreement with Cambodia enters into force” and we’re pretty certain that the many EPO stakeholders in Cambodia were truly excited. All zero of them! Cambodia has ZERO European Patents (EPs) [1, 2], so the EPO under Battistelli has truly become self-satirising.

“European patents granted by the EPO and validated in Cambodia will have the same legal effects as a corresponding Cambodian patent and will be subject to Cambodian patent law,” says last night’s statement.

Cambodia is a former colony of France and a cheap publicity stunt for the disgraced Frenchman who is leaving the Office in exactly 4 months from now. The cronies whom he brought to the Office will get to keep their jobs, whereas hard-working staff whom he mentally tortured is said to be on the way out. The “thank-you” or the reward for all the hard work (rigging the annual reports with low-quality patents) will be sacking. Backlog is drying up fast, rendering them redundant. █

The Corcoran affair is the subject of investigative journalism in Germany these days [PDF]

Summary: Amid the systematic destruction of the Office and by extension the Organisation as well (e.g. judges from the ‘outside’) we learn that there may have been another troublesome ‘eviction’ in Eponia (hours ago)

Can anyone confirm that an EPO employee based Munich was forcefully removed earlier today? We were told so by a reliable source. We don’t know for sure if this is true (our source does not know either), but might other sources suggest that this actually happened today (Monday)? It was 3.5 years ago that Judge Patrick Corcoran was removed from his office in Munich. He had to wait 3 years for ILO to rule in his favour several times, forcing the EPO’s management to reinstate him (although he was soon thereafter sent to ‘exile’ in another country with a demotion).

“It was 3.5 years ago that Judge Patrick Corcoran was removed from his office in Munich. He had to wait 3 years for ILO to rule in his favour several times, forcing the EPO’s management to reinstate him (although he was soon thereafter sent to ‘exile’ in another country with a demotion).”Speaking of Munich, earlier today the EPO said: “Join us in Munich for this year’s EPO User Day on 18 and 19 June” (linking to a page which speaks of “Update on unitary patent protection”).

Well, forget about the Unitary Patent. It’s dead, more or less, it’s just live enough for Team Battistelli and Team UPC to keep pretending that this zombie can come back to life. Earlier on we saw Alexander Esslinger citing the Bristows lies from IAM. We’re not surprised IAM published lies about the UPC as the EPO’s PR agency paid it to promote UPC agenda. Esslinger wrote:

If #UPC starts post-Brexit a situation is not unlikely that the UK will permanantly participate in the UPC court system but not be covered by a UP (unified patent) https://twitter.com/iam_magazine/status/992750891521503233 …

Another UPC booster followed up with:

Optimism is good, however not entirely convinced the narrative UK post-Brexit UPC (+) and UP (-) will fly (though IMHO the latter is a given).

“Optimism is never good when it sets false expectations and prolongs the disappointment that it inevitably entails,” I told him, “causing financial ruin and bad judgment in the interim…”

Battistelli and Campinos probably hope to replace patent examinations and appeals with the UPC, but they aren’r succeeding. Sure, the EPO is dying (not just its reputation), but so does the UPC/UPCA. They may end up creating a serious vacuum in Europe. █

Battistelli is drunk on power, not just on wine

Summary: CEIPI is being shamelessly advertised in official publications of the EPO and employees have their rights trampled upon, allegedly with the sole intention/purpose of scaring workers

OUR record when it comes to EPO rumours is a pretty decent one. Almost everything that we publish under the banner of “Rumour” later turns out to be correct.

Last week we wrote about the EPO Official Journal being (mis)used to shamelessly market an employer of Campinos which Battistelli will soon take over. We wrote this based on our own observation and in the meanwhile sought independent verification of our judgment. Surely enough, after some internal consultation, a trusted person said: “I can confirm you that the CEIPI spam you referred to is only there for the purpose of the Cancer’s [Battistelli's] self promotion…”

It’s like Battistelli lacks any fear of being held accountable. This kind of abuse — or dare we say “corruption” — has become so banal.

“Those who pretend that things have calmed down at the EPO certainly aren’t paying attention.”“I can also confirm to you,” the person continued, “that another EPO employee has been “corcoranised”. The reasons may have to do with low production figures, but the referred person was denied a due process. This examiner has probably been fired “pour l’exemple”. Middle management (the metastasis) applies right now a maximum of pressure and squeeze the last drops from staff as they fear a massive production decrease as soon as the main Tumor leaves the EPO. And much more to come!”

The employee being "corcoranised" (not our term) was reported by us hours after it had happened. Those who pretend that things have calmed down at the EPO certainly aren't paying attention. █

Thuggery at the EPO is taking its toll on the mental health of staff

Summary: The judge whom Battistelli attacked, Judge Corcoran, is rumoured to be in a psychiatric hospital after 3.5 years of legal battles and defamation against him

THE plague of suicides at the EPO is undeniable and it can directly be linked to Battistelli’s policies, (mis)behaviour, and sheer abuses.

“Topić is known for causing that (in Croatia), just like Battistelli.”Causing one’s perceived opponents to commit suicide or sink into depression isn’t a novel tactic. Topić is known for causing that (in Croatia), just like Battistelli. We know for a fact that both have been bullying — in several courtrooms (and countries) — Judge Corcoran and in a recent press dialogue/interview Corcoran’s lawyer said she thankful that Mr. Corcoran is still alive after all the abuse he was subjected to by Battistelli and his ‘bulldog’.

“Prowling around the corridors of the Isar building, Märpel learnt unfortunate news,” Märpel wrote last night. “It appears that Mr. Corcoran is in hospital. Märpel heard he was sent to be treated for “psychiatric reasons”. Märpel has no access to the medical file and cats are not familiar of psychiatric hospitals, but there are few reasons to be sent to a psychiatric hospital in Germany. The most common one is when the patient is in danger of committing suicide.”

Benoît Battistelli, if he has any morsel of guilt left in him, might be able to ‘medicate’ himself with some wine, having repeatedly abused people who ‘dared’ (or had the courage) to mention his corruption. █

Summary: Rumours that Belgium made a back room deal with Battistelli may be further substantiated with the just-confirmed appointment of Archambeau

THE predictions we made turn out to be right on point again. Not only did António Campinos swap a seat with Battistelli at EPO but also at a French institution. We’ve called that “musical chairs”.

“Did corrupt Battistelli make an alleged ‘exchange’ with Belgium (similar to a vote-buying exercise) and what did Campinos know throughout all this?”Archambeau, who came from the EPO and is Belgian, also gets the top job at EU-IPO (just published in German is Helena Hause’s article titled “EUIPO successor: Archambeau to become the new Executive Director“).

The Belgian Jérôme Debrulle is rumoured to have played an indirect role. In reverse chronological order, here is an explanation of what’s going on here and what happened behind the scenes:

• Fresh Allegations That the Belgian EPO Delegation is Compromised or in Cahoots With Benoît Battistelli
• The Hogwash Begins: Patent Microcosm’s Media Pretends Campinos is Anything But Battistelli’s French Succession Plan
• Christian Archambeau on the Verge of EUIPO and EPO, Making the Two Less Distinguishable
• EPO Rumours About Antonio Campinos as Replacement for Benoît Battistelli

Did corrupt Battistelli make an alleged ‘exchange’ with Belgium (similar to a vote-buying exercise) and what did Campinos know throughout all this? It would be a damn shame if EU-IPO, part of the EU, got embroiled in or tainted by EPO corruption. As readers may recall, there was already a scandal associated with the immunity of António Campinos at the EU-IPO. Is anyone ever going to properly investigate these things? █

The EPO’s new President did it in EUIPO less than a year ago

Summary: The latest rumours that swirl in Munich is that layoffs are coming that aren’t just ‘shadowed’ and, adding insult to injury, these will involve literally insulting fired examiners (blaming them rather than the management’s deliberately bad strategy)

THE EPO already undergoes layoffs, albeit in 'shadowed' form, as we’ve repeatedly noted. There was a severe case of firing for that notorious "incompetence" less than a week ago, i.e. only a few days after the summer vacation had ended.

“There’s meanwhile nothing that can save the Office.”The latest Isar rumour, according to a reliable source, is that many examiners will be removed soon because of “incompetence”.

We doubt that even examiners would be surprised if they heard that. It’s almost expected and we’re guessing that the rumour is based on something that someone heard from the management. We already heard similar rumours half a year ago (the numbers suggested around 1,000 firings).

So much for a future-proof Office of “excellence,” as Battistelli loved to put it. He excused his own incompetence by asserting that others were incompetent… while calling those who spoke out about it “Nazis” (the projection tactics go a long way at the EPO).

António Campinos is already experienced at layoffs and covering them up.

There’s meanwhile nothing that can save the Office. Applications are slow to come in, the costs have become harder to justify because of the declining quality of examination, and the UPC is dead. █

Summary: The EPO advertises jobs in Prague and Lisbon; this leads to speculations less than a year after António Campinos sent EU-IPO jobs to India (for cost reduction)

THE volume of patent news definitely seems to have decreased in recent months. We’re not sure why, we can only speculate and say that journalism in general is on the demise.

The European Patent Office (EPO) is nowadays playing if not paying the media for publicity stunts (not journalism). António Campinos, like his predecessor, comes up with more tricks for enabling software patents in Europe. We’re meanwhile trying to figure out what goes on recruitment-wise (HR is still led by Bergot).

“The EPO does not operate there, at least not yet, and back in the days people entertained the possibility of EPO expanding to Romania for ‘cost savings’.”One reader asked us: “Have you seen the job offers on LinkedIn?”

EPO job offers are in themselves news because there’s a hiring freeze in effect for years to come (waiting for examiners to leave or retire).

The reader asked: “Does the EPO have branches in Prague and Lisbon?”

If any EPO insiders/friends are aware of something, please do get in touch.

It was almost exactly one year ago that António Campinos was involved in an outsourcing scandal; he tried hard to suppress debate about it.

If anyone out there can send us information regarding Prague and Lisbon EPO jobs, we’ll be able to clarify. Nobody else is likely to cover it. The EPO does not operate there, at least not yet, and back in the days people entertained the possibility of EPO expanding to Romania for ‘cost savings’. Does Campinos have ‘plans’ he isn’t sincere about? There’s no disputing the fact that under Campinos the EPO is even less transparent than it was under Battistelli. █

When the politician met the banker

Summary: Rumours persist that after Battistelli had rigged the election in favour of his compatriot nefarious things related to that were still visible

THERE have been several rumours swirling about António Campinos, but evidence is at times lacking or relatively weak. The European Patent Office (EPO) is corrupt, no doubt, and there’s plenty evidence to show it. Demonstrating that Campinos plays an active role in it, however, isn’t easy. Days ago we mentioned EPO ‘outsourcing’ rumours; we asked for input and got some input a couple of days later.

“We already saw Battistelli doing this many times in the past. It’s a form of corruption.”As readers may recall, Battistelli clearly meddled/intervened to have Campinos ‘set up’ as his successor. Take Belgium for example (we wrote about half a dozen articles about it, since more than a year ago, as this relates the UPC and EUIPO). Inside sources said that its vote was more or less ‘bought’.

Based on LinkedIn job postings, sources tell us, other countries may have had their vote ‘bought’ (rewards given after the vote, not before or throughout). We already saw Battistelli doing this many times in the past. It’s a form of corruption. We’ve been giving examples since 2014.

We’re told that the job postings have nothing to do with outsourcing but more to do with national patent offices and Council delegates (as was the case in Belgium). As one source framed it: “Is António Campinos paying for the votes which made him the seventh president of the EPO, or for future support?

“His election was a rigged process (we wrote about it countless times before) and the effect of this rigged election may be more profound and long-lasting than people care to realise.”A curious aspect of this is that the job advertisements on the EPO’s LinkedIn page aren’t always on the EPO’s site. Some may have already disappeared (maybe due to public scrutiny). We leave it as an exercise for the reader, e.g. which jobs these are and the possible motivations. One thing we do know is that there are internal conversations about it and Campinos has much to worry about. His election was a rigged process (we wrote about it countless times before) and the effect of this rigged election may be more profound and long-lasting than people care to realise. Certain people are indebted or are owed “favours”. There are many ways to pass money around, e.g. jobs, EU budget, and EPO budget (see how Battistelli looted the EPO itself a few weeks before he left). █