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NEWS FEED
#StartupsEverywhere: Washington, D.C.
Sonya Dunn, founder and CEO of JEMH Enterprises, and military spouse for over 20 years, will be on the panel, to discuss ways in which active military/military families/veterans can utilize tech and entrepreneurship for opportunity. Sonya is excited by recent legislation, such as the Military Spouse Employment Act of 2018, to better support military families and is hopeful lawmakers will continue to partner with military spouses to create for more entrepreneurial opportunities.
Startup News Digest 10/26/18
The Big Story: Patent trolls aren’t a fairy tale. Last week, in a speech to the Eastern District of Texas Bar Association, the United States Patent and Trademark Office Director Iancu told a room full of trial lawyers that there is no patent troll problem and that it's just a "narrative" being pushed by large companies trying to decrease innovation and competition. This week, we pushed back on that claim, explaining that abusive patent litigation is “a real threat and one every startup founder dreads.”
Statement on USPTO Director Iancu’s Speech to the Eastern District of Texas Bar Association
Last week, United States Patent and Trademark Office Director Andrei Iancu gave a speech to the Eastern District of Texas Bar Association, where he implied that patent trolls were not a real problem faced by innovators, but instead just a “narrative” made up to scare away innovators. Not only is this factually inaccurate, but it is troubling that Director Iancu would ignore the overwhelming data showing that low-quality patents have led to a rash of abusive patent litigation directed towards small companies and entrepreneurs over the past decade.
#StartupsEverywhere: San Francisco, Calif.
This week, we met with Alec Sorenson, Founder and CEO of Tradespace. Leaning on his view of both the D.C. ecosystem and San Francisco ecosystem, Alec offers a unique perspective of how government can work with startups. He offers a key piece of advice, as Alec believes “This work starts with us - having conversations with lawmakers and speaking up. Education on this issue is key.”
Startup News Digest 10/19/2018
Pushing 5.9 GHz for 5G. The federal government is seeing more and more pressure to free up airwaves currently reserved for vehicle safety so that they can be used for the next generation of wireless networks, especially as different vehicle safety technologies that don’t depend on that spectrum are becoming commonplace.
#StartupsEverywhere: Wichita, Kan.
Wichita is touted as the “Air Capital of the World”, but Jacob Wayman hopes to make the city more than just that. Jacob hopes to build a stronger ecosystem in Wichita to make it an innovation capital of the world
Startup News Digest 10/12/2018
The Big Story: A second Senate privacy hearing. The Senate Commerce Committee held its second hearing on online privacy this week, which included testimony from privacy advocates pushing for federal privacy legislation.
USPTO Weakens Important Program for Fighting Patent Abuse
Earlier this year the USPTO proposed a rule to change the standard, known as BRI, by which patents are evaluated during PTAB reviews. On Wednesday, USPTO announced a final rule that does away with the BRI standard in favor of a more restrictive alternative.
#StartupsEverywhere: Dorset, Vt.
Brooks Addington is the CEO of Tost. TOST is an all natural dry sparkling non-alcoholic beverage created to reach every occasion when the consumer is looking for a substantive beverage that is non-alcoholic, yet all natural, low calorie, and meaningful.
Startup News Digest 10/5/2018
The Big Story: NAFTA Becomes USMCA. This week, the United States, Canada, and Mexico announced the terms for an updated North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), and renaming the agreement the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
Engine Files Amicus Brief in La Park La Brea v. Airbnb
Last week, Engine filed an amicus brief in La Park La Brea v. Airbnb, a case pending before the Ninth Circuit that presents serious questions about the viability of Section 230 of the Communications Decency.
#StartupsEverywhere: Iowa City, Iowa
This week we chatted with two leaders of the Iowa City ecosystem to learn more the partnership between the University of Iowa and the Iowa City Area Development Group. While the ecosystem is strong, there’s still a need for policy changes to encourage additional entrepreneurship.
Startup News Digest 9/28/2018
The Big Story: Lawmakers mull privacy rules. Facing privacy regulations from abroad and from individual states, lawmakers are getting serious about putting in place federal rules to protect Internet users’ privacy.
#StartupsEverywhere: Minneapolis, Minn.
This week, we met with Sue Marshall who has helped to grow the entrepreneurial ecosystem in Minnesota, including her own company NetZro. Leaning on the traditional industry of food processing, Sue created a company to decrease food waste. Sue wishes for more policies creating low-cost and free space for research to be done by startups.
Startup News Digest 9/21/2018
The Big Story: Privacy Looms Large in Washington.
This week, the European Parliament approved sweeping changes to its copyright regime, including Article 13, which would effectively require all websites hosting user generated content to adopt expensive and ineffective content filters. The proposal also creates a new IP right for publishers that requires websites to pay publishers if the website creates a link to the publisher’s content.
#StartupsEverywhere: Los Angeles, Calif.
To celebrate and support latino entrepreneurs, we met with Robbie Cabral, founder and CEO of BenjiLock. Latino entrepreneurs face challenges such as inadequate access to capital; in fact, only 12% of Latino firms employing more than one person received bank loans, compared to 18% of white-owned firms, 15% of Asian-owned firms, and 14% of Black-owned firms. Despite these challenges, Robbie is thankful for the mentorship and guidance received from SBA’s SCORE programs. He hopes that policymakers can focus on creating more opportunities for entrepreneurs from every walk of life.
Startup News Digest 9/14/2018
The Big Story: Europe passes online filtering rules.
This week, the European Parliament approved sweeping changes to its copyright regime, including Article 13, which would effectively require all websites hosting user generated content to adopt expensive and ineffective content filters. The proposal also creates a new IP right for publishers that requires websites to pay publishers if the website creates a link to the publisher’s content.
#StartupsEverywhere: Boston, Mass.
Fady Saad is the co-founder and director of Partnerships at MassRobotics, innovation hub and startup cluster focused on the needs of the robotics community. As leader in New England and the U.S., MassRobotics has attracted attention from policymakers, locally, nationally and even internationally - including receiving over two million dollars from the state government.
Letter from Online Creator Platforms on Article 13
Current legal frameworks have allowed us to build creative online communities that have enabled musicians, writers, artists, developers, designers, and filmmakers throughout Europe to access a global online market. We are concerned that proposed changes to the European Copyright Directive, specifically Article 13, will threaten the existence of these vibrant online communities.
Startup News Digest 9/7/2018
The Big Story: Congress tackles content moderation. In doubleheader hearings this week, lawmakers grappled with how Internet companies can and should moderate user-generated content on their platforms.