RE: [PIUG List] Information on Peer to Patent

Alison, Jason,  I'll take the bait.   While Greg Aharonian is more th=
an likely to defend himself over his remarks critical of the PTO's Peer to =
Patent pilot program, I think we should all consider what the Peer to Paten=
t program really is.     It is another in a line of efforts PTO
management has dreamt up in order to avoid real solutions to the PTO backlo=
g problems.
After having reduced physical library and classified collections upon movin=
g to the new PTO facilities, after having pushed examiners' morale and pati=
ence to the limit, PTO management keeps hoping those outside of the PTO can=
 accomplish its miracles for it.   Peers can locate the best prior art.=
   MBA students can propose the solutions to PTO problems.   Law st=
udents can prosecute patent applications without having passed the patent b=
ar.    Why not turn Pb into gold while you're at it.     Thes=
e various half-baked approaches will have no more impact on the growing bac=
klog than Accelerated Examination, which has yet to rise to the drop in a b=
ucket level.    When will PTO management start budgeting for more tim=
e/examination, better tools that provide access to open literature and comm=
ercial literature prior art, better morale and working conditions for those=
 who can most likely improve the backlog, viz., US patent examiners?!  =
  

While Greg Aharonian expresses his criticisms with a dose of sarcasm, we co=
uld all benefit from more hard-headed analyses of PTO initiatives.   =
 Do critical stakeholders in the US patent system, the US patent bar, paten=
t examiners, litigators, judges, and patent owners, find the proposals logi=
cal and likely to accomplish their intended goals?   How would PTO's ma=
nagement ever know?   They seem determined to ignore most of those stak=
eholders while giving ear to a narrow group.      I find sarcasm =
far less destructive than union-busting of POPA, purging of many senior PTO=
 managers during the Dudas Days, outsourcing of searching, rules proposals =
unlikely to withstand court scrutiny, etc.    If we're going to get o=
ur hackles up, let's be irritated with the folks at the top of the PTO that=
 seem to cause more problems and less solutions.   

Long live the patent bloggers & gadflies!

Roy Zimmermann
Medtronic

--- On Mon, 7/28/08, Alison Taylor <ataylor_at_threshinfo.com> wrote:
From: Alison Taylor <ataylor_at_threshinfo.com>
Subject: RE: [PIUG List] Information on Peer to Patent
To: "PIUG Discussion List @ Listbox" <piug_discussion_list_at_v2.listbox.com>
Date: Monday, July 28, 2008, 2:25 PM

I agree with you Jason.

Greg - I appreciate your frustration but please don't include all of us
in your responses. If the information and technology is out there
everyone will want to use it, regardless of whether they're experts or
not. Our job is to respond to the changing environment in the most
useful manner while retaining an income.....

Alison Taylor

Alison Taylor, PhD
Threshold Information, Inc.
1601 Sherman Ave., Suite 500,
Evanston, IL 60201
(847) 433 8306



-----Original Message-----
From: Jason White [mailto:jasonw_at_semiconductor.com]
Sent: Monday, July 28, 2008 8:54 AM
To: PIUG Discussion List @ Listbox
Subject: RE: [PIUG List] Information on Peer to Patent

Mr. Aharonian,

You are not privy to the goals and interests of every list member in
receipt of these emails, and you have no way of knowing that there are
no interested parties. Not everyone here is paid to do patent
searching. This is the 'Patent Information Users Group' - a subject
which has implications far beyond merely prior art searching.

You are entitled to consider this project a 'scam' for all of your own
reasons. I, for one, applaud NYU's and the USPTO's efforts to attempt
to include feedback from the broader internet community, rather than
relying on the efforts of patent experts. If you feel you bring real
value to the table, then you need not feel threatened by these efforts.

I, for one, believe that the more eyes we have looking at these
applications, the more trust the public will have in our patent system.
I often mention this program to engineers and scientists in the field
who express an interest in IP, or express doubt in the validity of
software patents. That alone shows that Rahan's efforts are not in
vain.

I found your tone inappropriate. Let's keep things respectful, shall
we? Mr. Uddin, please feel free to continue your updates.

Regards,
Jason White
Intellectual Property Tools Manager
Semiconductor Insights
A Division of TechInsights
3000 Solandt Road
Ottawa, ON Canada K2K 2X2
T: 613-599-6500 x4371
F: 613-599-6501
Email: jasonw_at_semiconductor.com
Web: www.semiconductor.com

-----Original Message-----
From: Gregory Aharonian [mailto:srctran_at_TheWorld.com]
Sent: Sunday, July 27, 2008 12:15 PM
To: PIUG Discussion List @ Listbox
Subject: re: [PIUG List] Information on Peer to Patent


Rahan Uddin writes:
>I am writing to share inforation on Peer to Patent: Community Patent
>Review pilot (featured in October 2007 PIUG newsletter), and request
your
>participation in improving the patent system.

Rahan,

    I know many academics are not known for deep thinking, but has it
occurred to you of the illogic of asking a group of people - who are
paid
to do patent searching - to volunteer to do patent searching that mostly
benefits their companies' competitors?

    And has it occurred to you that the logistics of large-scale patent
searching is one reason companies employ searchers and give them, in
some
cases [but not enough], substantial budgets to handle the complex
informatiion
flows?

    But I apologize. I forgot that the NYU Law School, where this prior
art
scam is being sponsored, does not charge law students any tuition fees
because all of the NYU Law School professors are volunteering their time
to
teach.

Greg Aharonian


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Received on Wed Aug 06 2008 - 00:32:55