SiliconBeat

I’ve been following the patent reform debate closely. This is one of those perennial issues that everyone wants to see fixed, but can never find a compromise. But today comes word that the White House has backed a compromise that promises to move legislation at least out of committee. From the Wall Street Journal:

“President Barack Obama’s administration supports major changes proposed in landmark patent legislation, likely accompanied by a roughly 15% fee hike, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Director David Kappos said Tuesday.

“While a compromise, it clearly moves the ball forward,” Kappos said of the bill, which if approved would bring the first major changes to the patent process in 50 years. On Monday, Commerce Secretary Gary Locke wrote a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee expressing support for the Senate legislation.

The bill, introduced by Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., pushes to harmonize the U.S. patent process with international standards and grants the patent office more authority to make rules and increase fees.

We’ll see if the center holds on this. Among the biggest changes: Read the rest of this entry »