Patent Law

Gamy

By Gary Odom and Jordan Kuhn

In their initial press release, Article One Partners declared "the current U.S. Patent System is outdated, archaic, and stifling to innovation." Their solution? Game the system.

Article One Partners is a patent bounty hunter system, paying $50,000 for invalidating prior art on big-money patents presently enforced. What's behind it?

Front running is an illegal practice for stock brokers, of trading on proprietary information prior to releasing that information to clients. But is front running illegitimate for those not licensed or registered to trade? At least someone is betting not.

Imagine a hedge fund that fronts a site, paying to have patents invalidated. Patents crucial to a company. Patents that, if invalidated, would cause the company's stock price to swoon. Imagine having that information ahead of the market, and shorting the stock before releasing the information. Front running. An injection of smart money before the dumb money weighs in.

From the Article One Partners web site:

Article One is not an investment adviser. This Site content does not constitute investment, securities, trading, patent or other advice or recommendation. Article One may have or take trading positions in the companies mentioned on this Site.

Article One Partners is reputedly founded by Cheryl Milone. The same Cheryl Ann Milone who was an IP attorney at Roger & Wells, with a law degree from Georgetown University, where she was a member of The Journal of Legal Ethics? You've come a long way, baby.

Full post as published by The Patent Prospector on November 19, 2008 (boomark / email).