Was Microsoft given its filewrappers back temporarily?

[James Love <love@cptech.org>]

Interesting tip regarding the Patent office.... *very interesting*
jl


   Subject: 
         PATNEWS: Was Microsoft given its fielwrappers back temporarily?
     Date: 
         Sun, 8 Nov 1998 19:37:31 -0500
    From: 
         srctran@world.std.com (Gregory Aharonian)
 Reply-To: 
         patent-news@world.std.com
      To: 
         patent-news@world.std.com



!19981109  Was Microsoft given its filewrappers back temporarily?

The following is pure, unsubstantiated gossip. The allegations are so
outrageous (in that the reported actions defile the spirit of the sanctity
of the secrecy and unalterability of patent applications) yet possible to
verify that I find them impossible to believe.  At the same time, I pass it
on because my source has a decent (though not perfect) record with me for
doing so in the past.  With the jockeying for positioning going on as
Lehman leaves and a new Commissioner comes in, some of what I am being
sent probably is internecine undermining, a fun form of DC politics as
Newt just found out.  Unfortunately, there are no interns at the PTO
(actually I don't know, are there interns at the PTO?).

                                       ==

Greg

Regarding the email you referred to by Jack Harvey wanting the Microsoft files.
(and from what I heard, Jack Harvey wasn't the only SPE involved.  Like the
other supervisors, Mr. Harvey got his orders from Director Joseph Rolla and
passed them down to examiners).

Internal file wrappers (the application file with application, correspondence
etc) are ONLY for internal use while the file is in prosecution.

Microsoft got the internal file wrappers turned over to them.  It was wrong
and very very special treatment for them...

Examiners speculate that there was something damaging in one or more of the
applications.  Something that would blow their defense out of the water in
the Department of Justice case.

So Microsoft retrieves the file wrappers, changes the damaging application
and returns them to the Patent Office with no one the wiser. Evidence
disappears, never to be seen again.

Remember Lehman was a Microsoft lobbyist and that Microsoft is in a major
lawsuit with the Department of Justice.

                                      ====

Like I said, hard to believe such a betrayal of the patent system, especially
since many Microsoft patents tend to be as as uninnovative as most other
software patents, to have anything damaging in them (like "with the
technology disclosed herein, we plan to disrupt Sun Microsystems' Java
standard").

Still I am Bayesian, and my source has been right in the past. There are
enough people in DC investigating Microsoft that I hope someone will check
this out.

Greg Aharonian
Internet Patent News Service