2nd Quarter Patenting Slips for Tech Valley, Steady for Capital Region

ALBANY, NY (07/06/2011)(readMedia)-- Hoffman Warnick LLC (HW), an intellectual property law firm based in Albany, NY, has released the Tech Valley Patent Indices for Second Quarter 2011. The "Tech Valley Patent Indices" include data for the Capital Region (Albany, Schenectady, Saratoga and Rensselaer counties), Tech Valley, Tech Valley without IBM and GE, and the Capital Region without GE.

In the second quarter, "the Tech Valley Patent Index was down significantly, actually dropping below 800 for the first time in over a year. However, the Capital Region indices remained strong compared to last quarter" stated Spencer Warnick, partner at Hoffman Warnick. Warnick added that, "while it's disappointing to see the Tech Valley number drop like that, it's probably nothing to worry about in the long run. The Capital Region numbers, however, are encouraging because they indicate less reliance on the large corporations, GE and IBM, that typically provide most of the issued patents in our area."

The "Patent of the Quarter" is chosen to illustrate firsthand the creativity of Tech Valley inventors. This quarter, the POQ is awarded to: US Patent No. 7956607 issued to Robert W. Bergman for "Digital Ferromagnetic Part Inspection". The patent issued June 7, 2011. The patent is assigned to General Electric, which is a client of Hoffman Warnick. This patent illustrates the developments at GE Energy in Schenectady, one of the Capital Region's most consistent sources of technology generation.

To obtain a pdf of this quarter's Patent Index, please e-mail hwemail@hoffmanwarnick.com or visit www.hoffmanwarnick.com.

About Hoffman Warnick LLC: Hoffman Warnick LLC is an intellectual property law firm focusing on biotechnology, nanotechnology, computers and software, electrical, mechanical, chemical, and materials engineering. Hoffman Warnick is committed to providing the highest quality services including: domestic and international property rights procurement, dispute resolution, and licensing.