Inside the Beltway: The Politics of Innovation and Patent Policy

IPWatchdog Unleashed

This week we journey inside the beltway into the world of politics, legislation and rulemaking, discussing innovation and patent politics with Chris Israel. Chris is currently a senior partner with ACG Advocacy, which is one of the premiere bipartisan government affairs and strategic consulting firms in Washington, DC.

During our conversation we explore much of what is happening in DC relating to patents and innovation, and specifically discuss matters ranging from proposed guidelines from the National Institute of Standards and Technology relating to use of march-in rights to control drug prices, to the recently introduced RESTORE Act, which is little more than one-page would largely if not completely overrule the Supreme Court’s eBay decision and create a presumption that victorious patent owners who have proved infringement and withstood all invalidity challenges would be presumed to be entitled to injunctive relief.

We also spend time discussing whether and to what extent patent and innovation policy is or has become political in the traditional sense. Often you will hear people discuss how this is not political in the Republican vs. Democrat way, with members of Congress on both sides reaching across the aisle to agree, both in favor of more protections for creators and innovators, and others who reach across the aisle sharing positions more favorable to implementers. But are times changing and is the patent and innovation space becoming more political in the traditional R vs. D sense? There may be some reasons to believe that at least certain issues are becoming political, with progressive and populist policies and champions tending to favor regulation and legislation that is often portrayed as likely to lower costs of products and services, particularly those that relate to drugs, which has become a hotly debated topic within the patent and innovation community.

Chris and I also spend time talking about the reality that everyone on Capitol Hill is in favor of innovation—and much more innovation—and everyone seems to agree that the U.S. is suffering from a so-called China problem as it relates to the theft of intellectual property rights and innovation generally. And while everyone wants more innovation, talks about how important innovation is, and how it is essential to do something about the growing threat of theft from China, there is little agreement about next steps, or even basic solutions that would move past the talking points and into the realm of action.