ACT Responds to EC Criticism of the In-App Purchasing Model
ACT president Jonathan Zuck issued the following statement in response to concerns about the in-app purchasing/freemium business model raised by the European Commission. Consumers are the ultimate beneficiaries of the freemium model because it allows them to try before they buy. It gives consumers the power to decide how much, or how little they want to spend. The freemium model also gives parents the opportunity to try out an app, before purchase, to see if it is appropriate for their [...]
What To Do When You Get A Demand Letter
There is a lot of talk these days about patent trolls – who they are, what they do, and how we can best protect innovators from frivolous lawsuits. The demand letters sent by patent trolls are particularly concerning to small businesses—like app developers—that don’t have legal teams to help them figure out what to do. In an effort to help, here is a handy guide to dealing with demand letters. Download infographic
What You Should Know About the CBM Program
As patent litigation reform goes through Congress, there has been a lot of discussion about the expansion of the CBM program. However, there has also been a lot of confusion as to what the CBM program is and what expansion will actually mean. So, I’ve put together a FAQ to help you understand what everyone is talking about. What is CBM? Covered business method (CBM) patents are a category of patents that includes software patents. Today, CBM patents account for [...]
ACT Applauds WH Patent Troll Executive Action, Warns Against Litigation-Promoting CBM Expansion
Association for Competitive Technology executive director Morgan Reed issued the following statement regarding today's White House executive actions addressing patent quality. Action is clearly needed to address the problem of patent trolls. Thankfully the White House has responded to the requests of tech innovators to improve patent quality at the beginning of the process. Improvements in the way that applications are reviewed will help prevent bad patents from being awarded and used against small companies. This makes more sense than [...]
Private Broadband Investment Should be Guiding Principle for FCC Section 706 Review
ACT Executive Director Morgan Reed issued the following statement in reaction to today's FCC open internet announcement. In five short years, the app marketplace has grown into a $68 billion industry. This has been possible because our country possesses a robust wired and wireless infrastructure. That’s why ACT has always supported the principles outlined by the FCC in its first net neutrality rule. App users have contributed to an explosive increase in data consumption and further broadband investment will be [...]
My Prepared Remarks before the Senate Staff CBM Patent Briefing
The Senate had a briefing this morning for staff working on patent legislation. I was invited to make a presentation on the controversial covered business method patent extension which was dropped from the House bill to ensure its passage there. I outlined the reasons why the Senate should leave it out as well: Good morning. Thanks for the invitation to participate in this essential conversation. As a software developer, I've had a lot of experience tracking down pernicious bugs in [...]