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Financial Times
Apple, Microsoft and BMW urge EU to stop patent trolls.

Apple, Microsoft and BMW, together with a broad group of other tech companies and carmakers, have called on the EU to take action against so-called patent trolls, who buy up patents in the hope of making a profit through licences or lawsuits.
Other press coverage
IP2Innovate
IP2Innovate's 2nd statement on the Commission's intention to withdraw the SEP Regulation: Ahead of European Parliament’s JURI Committee hearing with EVP Stéphane Séjourné
BRUSSELS, 22 April 2025 - IP2Innovate: SEP regulation essential for European businesses' innovation and cost reduction
Ahead of European Parliament’s JURI Committee hearing with Commission's Executive Vice-President Stéphane Séjourné, IP2Innovate reiterates its strong opposition to the European Commission's intention to withdraw the SEP Regulation.
"Withdrawing the SEP Regulation now would be a grave mistake that undermines innovation, European competitiveness, and the EU legislative process itself," said Patrick Oliver, Executive Director of IP2Innovate. "The current SEP licensing environment is broken - unpredictable, fragmented, and inefficient - chilling innovation across sectors and eroding the competitiveness of entire European industries, who often face abuse by mostly non-EU entities. This situation places Europe’s supply chain security at risk and further limits the availability of innovative products and features and increases costs for European consumers."
"The Commission's claim of 'no foreseeable agreement' contradicts the facts. The European Parliament already adopted a position with overwhelming support, and the Polish Presidency has explicitly stated its readiness to resume work on the Regulation."
"Europe has become a venue where often foreign SEP holders litigate to exclude European companies from the market. The proposed Regulation brings essential transparency and fairness to a broken system."
"As we look to the future of standards, advancing - not abandoning - this Regulation is essential for Europe's technological competitiveness."
IP2Innovate
IP2Innovate statement on the European Commission’s plans to propose a new regulation governing SEP licensing
BRUSSELS, 5 April 2023 – According to news reports last week the European Commission’s planned proposal for a Regulation on standard essential patents (SEPs) will tackle deep-rooted problems such as the lack of transparency and predictability in SEP licensing. IP2Innovate looks forward to reading the official proposal in the coming weeks.
Patrick Oliver
Patent law reform strengthens Germany as a location for innovation; Europe needs to follow suit to enhance its competitiveness
Berlin, June 11th 2021 - The Bundestag today adopted legislation to modernise German patent law. The changes are an important step towards creating a better balance between patent protection and innovation protection. European patent law needs to follow Germany’s lead.