Pending Patent Harmonization

“Rose is a rose is a rose,” wrote Gertrude Stein.  Invention is invention is invention wherever, however.  But– this said, the definition of something new changes across continents.

A confusing issue that is facing global markets is the issue of patents.  Currently, there is no standard about what a patent is.  This has led to a lot of problems for people claiming intellectual property.  A new effort is underfoot to harmonize the process of getting a patent and establishing what a patent means.  Differences among patent systems cause legal uncertainty, complexity and increased costs.

According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, patent harmonization would narrow differences among patent laws, simplify patent applicants’ requirements, and thereby achieve greater efficiency in the global patent system – in turn speeding the movement of innovation from the development phase to the marketplace where it can create new businesses and new jobs.

“Last week, the U.S. Senate started debating a patent reform bill that would give the patent office the tools it needs to significantly expand its reform efforts,” U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke said.  “Congress has been working for a long time on this issue, and there is strong bipartisan support to get patent reform done this year. So we remain optimistic.”

For recruiters interested in new technologies, a more efficient system for patents would mean getting access to new technologies more quickly and perhaps being able to understand written patents more easily.  It would also ensure that if youdevelop something, your intellectual property would be protected in a similar way in other countries.

Additionally, if you haven’t checked out Google patent search for the industry that you’re working with, give it a try sometime. It’s a pretty amazing repository of information, and can give you some insights into the leading edge thinking of your industry. If you recruit for technical engineers, product designers, and other similar professions, you can actually use the patents to source candidates as well.