Charles Goldfinger

Biology Information Open Source's promoter, Richard Jefferson, asserts that BIOS is explicitly modelled after the Open Source initiative in software. But science is grounded in open exchange and the sharing of information, so what is the point of BIOS and other initiatives such as Science Commons?

In an earlier blog, I deplored the lack of data about the European IP market and in particular about the academic licensing business. I am delighted to report that my “bottle in the ocean” approach has produced results.

On May 26, the US Patent Office issued a preliminary ruling on another long-running patent fight. This battle differs from other high-profile clashes as the challenger is taking on not a big corporate entity, but a broad community of IT researchers and academics.

Intellectual property battles are not always settled in the marketplace. Epic, life-and-death struggles often take place in the judicial arena.

This week, from May 22 to May 27, the World Health Organisation (WHO) holds its Annual Assembly meeting in Geneva, which brings together representatives from all 192 member countries. As usual for such an august gathering, it will cover a wide variety of topics, including the controversial issue of intellectual property.

On May 12, it was announced that that an "innovative", "homegrown" digital signal processor (DSP) chip, to be designed and manufactured in China, was a fraud. Even more interesting is that the announcement was made by not by a Western agency or international body, but by the Shanghai Jiao Tong University (SJTU).

The US Supreme Court has issued a long-awaited verdict in a patent suit between eBay and a small, Virginia-based company, MercExchange. The ruling was unanimous and favourable to eBay, reverting an earlier permanent injunction.

Not only am I an ardent tracker of the IP landscape, but the opportunity to build a much-needed knowledge network with the leading European producers and consumers of IP is unique and irresistible.

If you think it’s hard to do a biotech start up, try doing it in Poland. You’ll face international condescension, local incredulity and the mysteries of Polish law, says Charles Goldfinger.