The end of the annus horribilis is at hand, and despite the hard winter ahead for the northern hemisphere, there is a sense of optimism for the new year.  The first generation of vaccines for the coronavirus appears promising. The US has elected as president a person who is within the internationalist tradition.  The UK's standstill agreement with the EU will still expire at the end of the year, but many are still hopeful a last-minute deal can still be...

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SEP licensing in supply chains: ECJ gets opportunity for a major trend-setting decision In a decision of November 26, 2020 in a patent infringement case of Nokia Technologies Oy against Daimler AG, the Düsseldorf Regional Court (file number 4c O 17/19) referred several questions to the European Court of Justice (ECJ) regarding the licensing of standard essential patents (SEPs) within multi-level supply chains. The Düsseldorf Regional Court suspended the infringement action until the decision of the ECJ. These questions referred...

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This article is part of Portolano Cavallo's monthly “INFORM@ Digital & IP” Newsletter. Click here to subscribe. | On October 22, 2020 through Resolution No. 541/20/CONS, the Italian Communications Authority (“AGCOM”) issued an administrative pecuniary sanction in the amount of EUR 100,000.00 to Google Ireland Limited (“Google Ireland”) for infringing the general ban on gambling advertising prescribed under Article 9 of Law Decree No. 87/2018 (the “Ban” and the “Decreto Dignità”, respectively). The decision in question is particularly interesting from a twofold perspective. Firstly, in...

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With the global COVID-19 pandemic forcing healthcare systems around the world to reimagine how healthcare can be delivered remotely and safely, we have seen a rapid proliferation of telehealth and virtual care solutions. In reality, COVID-19 has provided a long-awaited and much-anticipated tipping point for the virtual care industry, which promises to continue to grow exponentially long after the crisis has passed. Indeed, many are hoping that far from being a temporary workaround, the transition to Virtual Care could...

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