Patents and Property

9.00 Arrive, rather wet, at the Conrad. People are arriving for a two day world conference on IP, which is why we put my dinner yesterday. However, I am here to participate in a meeting on the ‘fringe’ for Truffles 100, which is the top 100 software companies in Europe. I miss the Truffles reception desk but meet Ron Zink of Microsoft who is here for the main conference and he points me in the right direction. Feel quite miserable I am not doing the main conference, but I am spread thinly enough already.

In the Truffles event there are two panel sessions. Commissioner Reding is there to wind up the first. The issues of business software patents and procurement come up. She ducks on patents, deferring to McCreevy. I resist asking whether that is what she does in the college. Those present gave a very eloquent explanation of why we need US style business software patents. This is the first time I have heard this from European companies and I am surprised. I think they have missed the boat, nevertheless it was good that the Commissioner heard it.

The Commissioner leaves and I wind up the session, dealing with issues from both panels. Lots of questions on software, patents and EPLA. I tell them that this is the first time I have heard European voices asking for business software patents and that just about everbody is against it (including me, though I confess their argument had some good points). I tell them it is not on the radar at the moment. The Gowers report is against it as well. I am able to recyle the information from Tuesday’s breakfast of procurement (happy coincidence) and I am asked about procurement of software for stock exchanges. This lead into an explanation of how I believe that if there is a merger of a US and European stock exchange then US Sarbanes Oxley regulation could be imposed if they share a technology platform. This would be one very good reason to buy European (only I think that is NOT what the committee of European supervisors is proposing). I spoke on this Sarbanes Oxley point and shared technology platforms in plenary some while ago, with much approval from ECON colleagues. Maybe I should do a Parliamentary question on it.

The meeting goes on much longer than planned so with chat afterwards I get back to my office at about 13.15. Fill up with cups of tea and try to catch up with UK member of the ECON Secretariat who has had outrageous (and I believe wholly untrue) allegations made about him in the Austrian press by an Austrian MEP.

14.00 Meet with chief patent counsel of Intel, also over here for the IP conference. He has also seen Toine Manders. He appears happy with the line I am taking on Criminal Sanctions for IP. We chat about how things are going generally and he says I should be doing a presentation to the IP Conference.
15.00 Check through purchasing price parity papers with Carol, pack my trunk for Strasbourg next week with all the papers I will need. Collect plane ticket for Strasbourg Brussels next week and buy Eurostar tickets. Collect items for speech tomorrow and somehow it is 20.30 before I leave. On the way out a Finnish colleague stops me to say he has heard I got my amendments through Group and he is supportive. I am seen talking with him by another colleague (Jan Mulder) who jokingly asks if I am organising a coup.