What: “Ideas Into Action: Implementing Reform of the Patent System,” a two-day conference at which federal government officials, industry leaders, lawyers, scholars and policy makers will address how patent reform should be implemented.
The conference, open to the media and registered guests only, is hosted by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and the Berkeley Center for Law and Technology at UC Berkeley’s School of Law (Boalt Hall).
Panel discussions will center on an FTC proposal that seeks to prevent the approval of unnecessary patents that slow competition and innovation and, consequently, raise consumer costs. A related NAS proposal, to be released the week of April 19, will also be discussed at the conference.
When: Thursday, April 15, 12-1 p.m. (Federal Trade Commissioner Mozelle Thompson, Mark Myers, co-chair of the NAS Science, Technology and Economic Policy Board and Boalt Hall Dean-designate Christoper Edley)
Thursday, April 15, 1:30-3 p.m. (Press tutorial)
Friday, April 16, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. (Panel discussions)
Where: Bancroft Hotel, 2680 Bancroft Way, Berkeley
Who: In addition to Thompson, Myers and Edley, participants will include Steve Kunin of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and U.S. District Judge Ronald Whyte. Industry participants include representatives from CISCO, Chiron, eBay, Eli Lilly, Genentech, Google, Inflexion Point Strategy, Intel and Microsoft.