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USPTO Orders Reexamination at EFF's Request


SAN FRANCISCO - The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) announced in a Tuesday press release that at its request, the US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) agreed to reexamine an illegitimate patent held by Clear Channel Communications.

The patent - for a system and method of creating digital recordings of live performances - locks musical acts into using Clear Channel technology and blocks innovations by others.

"The Patent Office agrees that there are serious questions about the patent's validity," said EFF Staff Attorney Jason Schultz. "This is a significant victory for artists and innovators harmed by Clear Channel's patent and for anyone concerned about overreaching, illegitimate patents."

Clear Channel now has two months to file comments defending its patent, to which EFF will get to respond. The USPTO will then determine whether to invalidate the patent. In roughly 70% of instances like this one in which a request for reexamination is granted, the patent is narrowed or completely revoked.

"Patents serve an important role in our economy," added Schultz. "Keeping illegitimate patents out of that system benefits all of us, helping up-and-coming artists and entrepreneurs."

EFF filed the request for reexamination in conjunction with Theodore C. McCullough of the Lemaire Patent Law Firm and with the help of students at the Glushko-Samuelson Intellectual Property Clinic at American University's Washington College of Law. The Clear Channel patent challenge is part of EFF's Patent Busting Project, aimed at combating the chilling effects bad patents have on public and consumer interests. The Patent Busting Project seeks to document the threats and fight back by filing requests for reexamination against the worst offenders.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is a nonprofit group of lawyers, technologists, volunteers, and visionaries working to protect digital rights.