On September 23, 2008, the Ontario Government introduced Bill 100, Ideas for the Future Act, 2008 (Bill), which would allow a qualifying corporation to receive a tax exemption for the corporation’s first 10 taxation years. | MORE

In Symbian Limited v Comptroller General of Patents ([2008] EWCA Civ 1066), the English Court of Appeal has held that software inventions are patentable if they make a “technical contribution” to the state of the art. | MORE

As reported in a previous E-TIPS article (“Canadian Do-Not-Call List Overwhelmed“, October 8, 2008, Volume 7, Number 8), three weeks ago the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) launched a national do-not-call list (DNCL). On October 20, the CRTC announced that it will consider changes to the DNCL. | MORE

In an en banc rehearing in Egyptian Goddess v Swisa, the US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has broadened the test for infringement of a design patent. Rejecting the relatively recent “point of novelty” test, the Court reviewed a long line of cases that started with a decision of the US Supreme Court in 1871, and affirmed that the appropriate test for infringement is the “ordinary observer” test. | MORE

The Supreme Court of Washington State has confirmed a finding that the dispute resolution provision of AT&T’s Consumer Services Agreement was unconscionable and therefore denied a motion to compel arbitration. | MORE

Following DefCon, the largest hacker convention in the United States, Canada launched its second annual IT security convention, “SecTor”. While the Canadian conference attracts a variety of people, many attendees and speakers were security professionals and well-intentioned hackers who seek out and pinpoint the internal vulnerabilities of the companies they work for. | MORE

US President Bush recently signed into law the PRO-IP Act (its full title is the Enforcement of Intellectual Property Rights Act) which strengthens federal penalties for piracy and counterfeiting, and creates a post of federal intellectual property czar, a person who would directly advise the President on domestic and international intellectual property protection. The PRO-IP Act also authorizes the seizure of any devices used in copyright piracy. | MORE

On October 15, 2008, the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) announced that it will hold public hearings to better understand broadcasting in new media, particularly the distribution of broadcasting content over the Internet and mobile devices. The CRTC is seeking comments on the following issues: | MORE

The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (Court), in Broadcom Corporation v Qualcomm Inc, recently upheld a jury’s determination that the defendant Qualcomm Inc (Qualcomm) infringed several patents of Broadcom Corporation (Broadcom). The Court held that it was proper for the jury to consider the lack of a legal opinion in determining whether Qualcomm had the necessary intent for indirect infringement through inducement. | MORE