EU - The Commission outlines the main points of anew IP rights strategy for Europe

The European Commission recently adopted a communication in which it outlines the main points of a future strategy for industrial property rights in Europe. The content of this communication is particularly important since it will affect Community policies in the field for the years to come. The main objective of this new strategy is to strengthen the quality and efficiency of the industrial property rights system in Europe, but also to raise inventors' and businesses' awareness and use of the system.
At the centre of the Commission's strategy is the enforcement of industrial property rights and the fight against counterfeiting and piracy, the detrimental effect of which has been recognised on numerous occasions. Moreover, the strategy defines as a main priority the creation of a Community patent and an EU-wide jurisdiction for patents.
The Commission will also study the overall efficiency of patent and trade mark systems in Europe, including the Community trade mark, seeking ways to enhance their effectiveness for inventors and Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs). Regarding in particular SMEs, the strategy includes specific measures to improve their awareness and effective utilisation of industrial property rights as part of their business.

Eco Patent Commons

Bosch, DuPont and Xerox Corporation have joined the Eco-Patent Commons, a first-of-its-kind business effort to help the environment by pledging environmentally-beneficial patents to the public domain. The three companies and founding member Sony pledge environmentally friendly patents to the public.
The newly pledged patents include:
A cutting edge, Xerox technology that significantly reduces the time and cost of removing hazardous waste from water and soil;
A technology developed by DuPont that converts certain non-recyclable plastics into beneficial fertilizer;
Automotive technologies from Bosch that help lower fuel consumption, reduce emissions, or convert waste heat from vehicles into useful energy;
Technologies developed by founding member Sony that focus on the recycling of optical discs.
The Eco-Patent Commons, launched by IBM, Nokia, Pitney Bowes and Sony in partnership with the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) in January 2008, provides a unique opportunity for global business to make a difference - sharing innovation in support of sustainable development. The objectives of the Eco-Patent Commons are to facilitate the use of existing technologies to protect the environment, and encourage collaboration between businesses that foster new innovations.