Business and Other Briefings
UK-IPO: A judgment in the case of Symbian's Patent Application was issued last week by the High Court overturning an earlier decision of the UK Intellectual Property Office (UK-IPO) to refuse the application because it relates to nothing more than a computer program.
The UK-IPO will be appealing this judgment with a view to seeking clarification from the Court of Appeal. Pending a decision by the Court of Appeal, the UK-IPO will be continuing to follow the practice, set out in its Practice Notices issued in November 2006 and February 2008, which are founded on the established Aerotel /Macrossan test. When applying this test, the UK-IPO will take account of the Symbian judgment in appropriate cases.
Press release ~ England and Wales Court of Appeal (Civil Division) Decision ~ Practice Notice issued in November 2006 ~ Practice Notice issued in February 2008
PR: Following industry-wide consultation, the Pensions Regulator has published updated guidance to support trustees & employers dealing with events that may impact upon their pension scheme and when applying for a clearance statement. The guidance has been updated taking into account the PR’s experience of operating clearance and reflects the way that both the regulator and the market have developed since the process was introduced in April 2005.
Alongside the guidance, the regulator has also published a consultation report, which describes the consultation that has taken place on this guidance, and explains how the consultation has shaped the final version.
FSA: The Financial Services Authority (FSA) has published a discussion paper (DP) (closes on 25 June 2008) that looks at intermediary commission disclosure and wider issues of transparency in the commercial insurance market.
In December 2007 the FSA published an independent report that considered whether disclosure of commission earned by commercial insurance intermediaries should be made mandatory. The report, however, raised wider concerns about market inefficiencies and the FSA announced that it would publish a DP to look into this area.
The DP examines the conditions necessary to ensure an environment that encourages market efficiency. Key to this is that buyers have access to clear, comparable information about the role of the intermediary including their services and the way they are paid.
Press release ~ Discussion paper - Transparency and Conflicts of Interest in the Commercial Insurance Market ~ Independent report on commission disclosure (scroll down) ~ The FSA will be holding its Annual Insurance Sector Conference on Tuesday 8 April
