This week’s edition of Clippings is all “straight, no chaser”: a good number of new stories, a good number of older stories, and a QoTW that questions core elements of the U.S. patent system.

Quote of the Week

“Even if AT&T’s [telephone] patent is theoretically applicable to the Internet, why should AT&T be allowed to claim such rights? If I set up an packet-based extraterrestrial communications network five years from now, should AT&T ‘own’ the rights to it?” — Alexander Wolfe

Wolfe’s Den. AT&T Suit Against Vonage Makes Mockery Of U.S. Patent System. Oct 22, 2007. Information Week columnist Alexander Wolfe blows hard, but true in his incredulity at the state of the U.S. patent system, which contributed to AT&T’s patent infringement lawsuit against Vonage. Cases: Cases & Litigation; Patent; Web & Online.

Clippings

Catherine Pickavet. Trademark Infringement Meets Consumer Privacy. Internet News. Oct. 29, 2007. Similarly named companies battle over trademark confusion, while consumers routinely send private and confidential e-mail to the wrong financial institution. Categories: Privacy & Security; Trademark.

The Wired Campus (Chronicle of Higher Education). Senators Support Open-Access Measure. Oct. 29, 2007. The Senate passes appropriations bill HR 3043, which includes language requiring all NIH-funded researchers to submit their final manuscripts to the National Library of Medicine’s PubMed Central. Now the measure, already passed in the House, needs to survive a Bush veto. Categories: Legislation & Regulation; Open Access; Science & Medicine.

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