Judge throws out Allergan patent, slams company’s Native American deal | Ars Technica

Judge throws out Allergan patent, slams company’s Native American deal | Ars Technica:

"The ruling by US Circuit Judge William Bryson could have wide effects on the patent landscape because the Restasis patents are at the center of a novel legal strategy that involves using Native American sovereignty rights to avoid certain types of patent reviews, called inter partes reviews, or IPRs."

Software is intangible, but not abstract

Enfish LLC v. Microsoft Corp. (Fed. Cir. May 12, 2016)
In the USPTO Memorandum, the Office noted:

"The Federal Circuit in Enfish stated that certain claims directed to improvements in computer related technology, including claims directed to software, are not necessarily abstract (Step 2A). The court specifically noted that some improvements in computer-related technology, such as chip architecture or an LED display, when appropriately claimed, are undoubtedly not abstract. Explaining that software can make non-abstract improvements to computer technology just as hardware can, the court noted that claims directed to software, as opposed to hardware, also are not inherently abstract."