Hatch, Cannon push patent bill

WASHINGTON — Companies behind everything from computer chips and cell phones to pills and beauty products want to see a change in how the United States handles patents, and two of Utah's lawmakers are in the middle of trying to find the right balance.

Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Rep. Chris Cannon , R-Utah, are part of the congressional committees working on the pending patent bill. Each have received campaign support in the past from some of the bill's top advocates and want to see a change in the patent system, which has not had an update in 50 years.

But trying to change laws that affect virtually every product imaginable, from the intricate inner workings of an iPod, to a toothpaste tube, to prescription drugs and plants, is not easy. Industry coalitions have formed to support or oppose the bill.

"We have to forge a compromise that represents the doable," Hatch said during a Senate Judiciary Committee meeting on the bill last month. "Just about everything we use on a daily basis represents innovation that is protected by our patent system."

Hatch said the debate on the bill has been "mischaracterized" as a "tech versus pharma" showdown" with technology and pharmaceutical companies at opposite ends of what should be in the bill.

"I take umbrage with that notion," Hatch said. "All stakeholders, big or small, no matter what industry, have a vested interest in improving our patent system."

Cannon sits on the House Judiciary Committee, where a subcommittee held a hearing on the bill in May. The full committee needs to approve it before it can go to the House floor for a vote. Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, has signed on as a co-sponsor to the Senate bill.

Coalitions of different companies from a variety of industries are quick to point out, too, that different opinions on the bill do not come from one sector to another but business model to business model.

The Coalition for Patent Fairness, which strongly supports Hatch's bill, includes computer companies such as Intel, Apple, Dell and Microsoft, but also Visa, MasterCard, St. Jude Medical and Chevron, among other members.

But on the other side, the Coalition for 21st Century Patent Reform, which runs the Web site www.patentsmatter.org, wants to see reform but does not want Congress to "erode the power of the patent," said spokesman Bill Mashek.

"Everyone agrees that the patent system should be renovated," said Coalition for Patent Fairness spokesman Steve Elmendorf. "While there have been only some technical changes made to the bill so far, "any sort of progress is a good thing," he said.