Tag Archives: fintech

Can blockchain be a game-changer for millions of IP transactions?

July 24, 2018 by Bruce Berman 0 Comments

The abundant promise of blockchain has yet to be realized. To many in IP, finance and tech, it is just beginning to come into sight.

The initial application of blockchain’s distributed ledger, bitcoin, has turned out to be more of a speculative sideshow than a legitimate alternative currency. We hear repeatedly that bitcoin is merely the first of many possibilities, and that blockchain should not be judged on the basis of bitcoin.

Fundamental Change?

One of the most intriguing areas of potential for blockchain, or encrypted distributed ledger of data, is transacting IP rights — so-called smart transactions. Smart transactions aim to make more efficient millions of copyright, patent and trademark licenses by providing greater transparency and the removing costly middlemen. It sounds great – but can it really happen or is it merely the alchemists’ fantasy?

In April, Managing Intellectual Property, magazine ran a feature on blockchain, “Blockchain Party,” which can be found here. The special report discusses how blockchain will fundamentally change IP transactions, and haw already started to. The race for blockchain patents is well under way, with U.S. and some European banks, fintech firms and tech companies jockeying for position with the Chinese.

Who use blockchain?

The following infographic from Bitfortune.net, a bitcoin promotion and gaming website, offers 16 industries and areas where distributed ledger adoption is underway. (Sources for the data are offered at the bottom of the graphic. They have not been checked.)

Bitfortune says “many experts believe that blockchain will change our world in the next 20 years as much as the internet has over the past 20.”

[Three useful blockchain articles follow the long infographic below.]

 

More on blockchain:

IP CloseUp: 59% of blockchain patents are owned by developers; BofA and IBM dominate banks and tech players.

DS Avocats: Blockchain, Smart Contracts and Intellectual Property.

WIPO Magazine: Blockchain and IP Law: A Match Made in Crypto Heaven?


Inauspicious Beginnings

Can blockchain shake off its inauspicious beginnings as bitcoin foundation and deliver on its promise?

Many are pulling for it, including me and several banks, fintech businesses and technology players, who are either investing heavily or hedging their bets.

 

Image source: bitfortune.net

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Automakers and tech giants are locked in a strange patent race

October 10, 2017 by Bruce Berman 0 Comments

At time when patent certainty and value are under attack, global automobile manufacturers are competing with major technology companies for IP rights to the future, especially driverless cars. 

The race is reminiscent of the competition between financial institutions, bigtech and fintech start-ups to control innovations in transactions, including those that relate to blockchain.

The automakers, like the banks, have traditionally cross-licensed each other in an effort to maintain patent peace and keep their franchise exclusive. It has yet to be determined if those participating in new technologies will wish to be similarly collaborative. Businesses like Google, Apple and Amazon certainly have the resources  and leverage to enforce inventions, if they choose to, or even buy a competitor.

The WSJ reports that a large part of filing in the auto industry has been with regard to self driving and connected cars, with 65% of GM’s filed patents in this area. Toyota, with more than 3,000 patents filed is by far the leader, but does not appear to figure into the self-driving patent race, choosing to focus on other areas of innovation, like efficiency (see graph below).

“Companies like Google, Facebook, and Apple, are pouring enormous resources into a vision of mobility that focuses on the driver experience,” writes Forbes“— so much so that they have the potential to take away some of the limelight — and profits — from the automakers many presumed would dominate car connectivity and driverless technology.”

Irony

There is some irony in the auto industry and financial patent races, since the Alice decision made software patents difficult to obtain and even harder to enforce. What are they thinking?

It remains to be seen how successful tech giants and disruptive banking and auto tech upstarts will be in competing with established players for innovation and rights – and if and how they will be able to deploy them. (With patents, sometimes leverage is more powerful than revenue.)

Two things are for certain: the source, ownership and importance of transportation inventions are changing; and the desire to secure meaningful patents that can be licensed will increase.

Image source: WIPO, Oliver Wyman; WSJ

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Michelle Lee to keynote “Patents for Financial Services Summit,” 7/19

May 22, 2017 by Bruce Berman 0 Comments

The 14th Annual Patents for Financial Services Summit being held July 19-20 at the Sheraton Times Square Hotel will examine recent developments affecting banks and other financial institutions. 

The featured speaker for 2017 is Michelle K. Lee, Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director, United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

Ms. Lee will address “The Current State of U.S. Patent Law.”

IP CloseUp readers can save $200. Use code IPCNYC. 

2017 program highlights include:

  • Consider the impact of recent and pending Supreme Court cases, including TC Heartland LLC v. Kraft Foods (venue and forum shopping), SCA Hygiene Products AB et al. v. First Quality Baby Products LLC (the availability of the doctrine of laches as a defense in patent litigation), and of Impression Products Inc. v. Lexmark International Inc. (patent exhaustion)
  • Evaluate best practices in oral argument before the PTAB and pinpoint the necessary information to communicate in an efficient and complete manner
  • Identify where changes have occurred in patentability and if additional clarity is available
  • Provide practical advice for weighing the costs and value of opinions of counsel, including when they should be obtained and from whom
  • Review the law of patent eligibility as it relates to FinTech in a number of jurisdictions outside of the U.S., including Canada, Australia, Japan, Singapore, and China
  • Earn CLE: This program was designed to satisfy approximately 13 hours of Continuing Legal Education credit requirements and is appropriate for both newly admitted and experienced attorneys

For a full list of speakers, go here; for the conference agenda, here.

To register as an individual or group, please go here.

Image source: worldcongress.com

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Accenture upsets blockchain believers with patent filing

September 23, 2016 by Bruce Berman 0 Comments

Consulting giant Accenture has rattled the cage of the fintech community by filing a patent for an “editable” blockchain that would allow a central administrator to edit or delete information stored in a permissioned blockchain system.

Business Insider cites a Financial Times report that states a permissioned system is governed by a central administrator using agreed upon rules. This differs from permissionless systems, like those used by blockchain pioneers such as Bitcoin, which have no central authority. A key feature of permissionless systems is that the records they contain cannot be changed.

Accenture unveiled a prototype of the blockchain on Tuesday developed jointly by Accenture and Giuseppe Anteniese, a Stevens Institute of Technology professor.

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Undermining Immutability?

“An editable system goes against one of blockchain technology’s key principals — immutability” reports Business Insider. The move is controversial to many because blockchain was conceived as an immutable, tamper-proof ledger, which eliminated the need for a centralized authority.

Accenture insists that immutability is not necessary in permissioned systems because everything is overseen by a single governing authority, and argues that the need for it in a permissionless system is part of the reason banks have been slow to create viable use cases with blockchain technology.

Business Insider thinks the success of Accenture’s system will depend on “whether or not financial services firms intend to use blockchain for use cases that require flexibility. Should they decide to implement the technology in more straightforward capacities, like managing their customers’ personal details, Accenture’s functionality would not likely be especially useful.”

Patent Application

There is no indication why a mere patent application — not a publication, notice of allowance, grant or successfully adjudicated right —  has reached this level of media coverage. Of late, blockchain-related patent filings, as well as issuances, have received significant coverage, prompting some to question where blockchain is headed.

Image source: businessinsider.com; bitcoinmagazine.com

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Financial patent summit to focus on IP and cybersecurity, July 20-21

May 23, 2016 by Bruce Berman 0 Comments

Fintech, or financial technology, is a rapidly growing industry with more than $15 billion of venture capital invested to date and even more on the part of financial institutions.

An array of banks, e-commerce businesses, product developers, and software companies are vying for a leadership role in financial transactions and cybersecurity.

Those interested in IP rights in the context of authentication and transactions should consider attending the 13th annual Patents for Financial Services Summit in New York at the Sheraton Times Square, July 20-21. Many of financial services’ leading patent holders and advisers will be present.

Major Players Attending

IP executives and counsel from top banks and services providers are participating this year, including those at Visa, Time Warner, Royal Bank of Canada, Barclays, TD Bank, Morgan Stanley, JP Morgan Chase, Google, Microsoft, AST, LoT and Red Hat.

Top patenting organizations: exchanges and stocks

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Patent and IP counsel from the financial services industry and patent attorneys from leading law firms will participate in this year’s Summit, says conference producer World Congress, “to discuss recent rulings and strategies to protect patents against NPEs, successfully file patent applications post-Alice, and foster innovation.’

IP CloseUp readers who use the conference code IPCNYC can save $100 off of registration.

New for 2016:

  • Updates on the Alice decision and understand its impact on patent applications
  • Discussion about prosecuting business method patents
  • Analyze recent patent cases including, Halo Electronics, Inc. v. Pulse Electronics; Stryker Corporation v. Karl Stroz Endoscopy-America, Inc.; Media Rights Technologies, Inc. v. Capitol One Financial Corporation, et al., and more
  • Hear in-house counsel views discuss pending legislation, including The Innovation Act, The Patent Act, and The Strong Patents Act
  • Evaluate their impact on PTAB and post-grant proceedings
  • Protect patents from NPEs and understand approaches to successfully defend against trolls
  • Improve patent quality and drive innovation within your organization
  • Explore the interplay between patents and cybersecurity

extThe Summit was approved in 2015 by the New York State Continuing Legal Education Board for 12.5 CLE credit hours in the areas of Professional Practice. In 2016, World Congress are programming for and anticipate approval for 13 CLE credit hours.

The full conference agenda can be found here.

For a list of speakers, go here. This year’s location is the Sheraton Times Square on Seventh Avenue.

To register, click here.

Image source: worldcongress.com; thomsonreuters.com

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Fintech patent competition: fierce, diverse, growing

February 1, 2016 by Bruce Berman 3 Comments

Among the most watched areas for new patent value is financial technology, covering inventions in areas like authentication, mobile payments and wealth management.

Fintech is among the few bright spots in the patent landscape, with leading banks like JP Morgan, Bank of American and Wells Fargo, and credit card companies like Visa, MasterCard and American Express deeply involved and competing with a broad range of new entrants, including:

• Traditional banking industry vendors such as Fiserve and IBM

• Scores of venture funded start-ups, some supported by former banking executives

• Established technology players such as Apple, Google and Amazon looking to capitalize on their   consumer recognition by expanding into banking and payments.

Close behind is leading Korean bank Shinhan and Bizmodeline Co., Ltd, a Korean company with a total of 2700 patents, 1000 patents related to Financial and Billing, 1400 patents related to Mobile, Ubiquitous, RFID and NFC, 300 patents related to authentication and other technologies. A host of Japanese companies, like Hitachi, Toshiba, Sony and NEC, have become more active in identifying and developing inventions in the transaction space; Microsoft, too.

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“Start-ups, big tech and… banks,” in the current IAM magazine, The Intangible Investor, looks at the diverse competition in this space. (Subscribers can find the piece, which I wrote, here.)

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For more good background, “FinTech: An IP Perspective,” is a comprehensive report from IP research firm, Releclura. It outlines the players in the space and details the patents they have accumulated and in which areas of banking or transaction. The report can be found here.

A summary of the Relecura research compiled by IP consulting firm Aistemos, with charts and graphs, can be found here.

Execs Poised to Profit

According to The Financial Times, former banking executives are all over fintech startups, hoping for a big payout. See “Former Wall Street titans shake-up banking with fintech investments.” 

In the Wall Street Journal, “Banks and Fintech Firms’ Relationship Status: It’s Complicated,” discusses how disrupters and big lenders, often seen as rivals, are finding some success playing together.

Top holders

Fintech upstarts have attracted more than $50 billion in investments on the premise that they will disrupt banking and finance the way Uber or Airbnb have the taxi and hotel industries. But despite a decade of stumbling the banking industry has proven a tougher business to crack than some had thought. The American Banker speculates that the fintech sector may be overheating.

“’It’s too simple to say all these banks are stupid,’” says Qasar Younis, a partner at the Silicon Valley seed fund Y Combinator.

Like Big Pharma

The banks, much like some of the pharmaceutical companies, are smart enough to know that they will not be able to come up with all of the technology solutions they need to succeed, and that they have the capital, markets and regulatory savvy that others need.

For more information, Forbes’ top fintech stories for 2015, go here; their “Fintech 50” also provides a good overview of the up-and-comers, here.

Image source: americanbanker.com; CB Insights; Relecura 

 

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