News Item

One-click patent rumbles on at the EPO

9 December 2009

The Board of Appeal of the European Patent Office (EPO) has recently heard an appeal against revocation of one of Amazon's "one-click" patents following opposition proceedings. The Board of Appeal found that the decision to revoke the patent should be set aside and that the patent should be returned to the opposition division for further consideration of an alternative set of claims.

The particular patent in issue is concerned with allowing a first individual to send a gift to a second individual when the first individual knows only the second individual's email address but not their postal address. There was considerable surprise when this patent was originally granted by the EPO, and the patent was subsequently revoked in opposition proceedings. Amazon then appealed that revocation. The Appeal Board decided that revocation of the patent as granted was correct, but that more limited claims relating to details of technical implementation of the invention should be considered further. The Appeal Board's reasoning for its decision is not yet available.

Mark Kenrick, Partner at Marks & Clerk comments: "It is not surprising that the Board felt that the main claims directed to the business method were not patentable, but it seems they are at least willing to entertain that the implementation of this business method might be patentable."

The Board's reasoned decision will be issued in due course, and Marks & Clerk will of course be monitoring the case to provide further updates.

In the meantime, for more information, contact your usual Marks & Clerk attorney or Mark Kenrick at mkenrick@marks-clerk.com.