Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Spotlight: What Platforms Can Do for Marginalized Voices in the App Economy
The rapid growth of the app economy from a handful of apps on a smartphone to a $1.7 trillion ecosystem of connected devices, software developer services, and funding created new opportunities for established developers and entrepreneurs. Just a year ago, ACT | The App Association concluded its cross country Developed Tour, highlighting the stories of the United States app economy beyond traditional tech hubs and the emergence of cities like New Orleans, Atlanta, and St. Louis as the next great [...]
Why the German Government Should Move Forward with its Current Patent Reform Proposal
As the European Union’s (EU) largest market, Germany is a frequent venue for patent litigation in the region. We now live in a world of increasingly complex devices, where a simple connected device can depend on hundreds, if not thousands, of patents. Under current German law, the burden of attaining a patent injunction is low because judges are not required to consider proportionality and the public interest. This is a particular concern for small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which could [...]
EU Event– Standards-Essential Patents: Progress or regression?
Standards-Essential Patents: Progress or regression? March 2, 2021 16:00 -17:00 CET Online Webinar Click here to register For small businesses that develop internet of things (IoT) devices, the ability to license standard-essential patents on fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms is vital to their competitiveness and innovative capacity. At a time of escalating FRAND disputes, including international anti-suit injunctions running amok, cases referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union, and legislation potentially on the table, is it time [...]
What the EU’s Digital Services Act Could Mean for Small Tech Businesses
After several rounds of public consultations, the European Commission finally released its long-awaited proposal for the Digital Services Act (DSA) on 16 December 2020 (see our statement here). Now that we have had some time to read and digest the proposed regulation, we are ready to break it down for you! Before we get into it, you can read our DSA position paper here if you are looking for even more information. What is the DSA? In short, the DSA [...]
ACT | The App Association and Other Leading Groups Express Support for IEEE-SA’s Patent Policy in New Letter
ACT |The App Association joined 41 other orgs supporting IEEE-SA’s patent policy in a letter to the standards organization. The 2015 IEEE-SA policy change is the prime example of a standard setting organization demonstrating leadership in providing clarity on the meaning of fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory (FRAND) commitments to make access to key standards like WiFi much more certain and manageable. The goal of this letter is to support IEEE-SA in light of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust [...]
Member Spotlight: Nebula Labs
During their last year of university in 2017, Dylan McKee and Nic Flynn, two computer scientists from Newcastle Upon Tyne launched their very own software house – Nebula Labs. The company specialises in developing mobile apps, web platforms, and tailored software solutions for start-ups, forward-thinking small enterprises, and government organisations. Both Dylan and Nic started developing software when they were teenagers. At the age of 13, Dylan released his first iOS app, myAltitude. With more than 1 million downloads worldwide, [...]