In one of his final executive acts before Christmas, President Obama signed a new law which could have a range of implications for the international patent community. While several provisions are expected to boost administrative efficiency and strengthen protection, critics worry that extending the scope and term of design patents could have unintended consequences.

It has been a year filled with high stakes patent litigation for the U.S. technology sector, and that trend has continued all the way through to the final days of 2012. A Pennsylvania District Court judge has ordered semiconductor manufacturer Marvell Technology to pay Carnegie Mellon University $1.17 billion following the infringement of two patents tied to hard disk storage devices.

As the economy took a downward turn, entrepreneurial activity started trending upward in recent years. To turn good ideas into sustainable businesses, however, startup companies and sole inventors must look beyond gathering the foundational ingredients.

Verizon and AT&T have been operating as somewhat of a duopoly in recent years, with Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile and a handful of others splitting the modest remainder of U.S. wireless subscriber market share. As 2012 comes to a close, Sprint is lining up a bold acquisition that could propel it toward the head of the pack.

Nokia and Research In Motion have decided to settle all outstanding patent litigation between the two sides as each plots its own strategy to close the widening gap in mobile market share created by Apple and Samsung. While the terms of the licensing agreement remain confidential, RIM will pay its Swedish competitor a one-time fee this quarter plus ongoing royalties.

The U.K. Intellectual Property Office has unveiled a new set of copyright reforms which could signal a watershed moment for the digital economy. In an effort to support the creative freedom of consumers and spur innovation, government officials will expand the number of scenarios in which protected works can be used without explicit permission of the original copyright owner.

The intersection of software development and intellectual property protection has been a popular destination for debate in recent years. But while some are calling for the absolute abolition of software patents, at least two well-regarded industry names are putting their dollars behind a more measured approach to reform.

The University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business, through its Batten Institute, released a briefing in April of this year covering the status of innovation in “green technology” as expressed in global patenting activity. The analysis defines “green technology” or “greentech” as “products and services that reduce energy and material consumption, waste and pollution.” According to the authors, the patents studied utilized the World Intellectual Property Organization’s classification system for alternative energy and covers the sectors of “solar, wind, geothermal, biofuel, biomass, fuel cell, hydro, synthetic gas, integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC), man-made waste, mechanical power from muscle energy, natural heat and waste heat.”

In a recent post by attorney Eric Lane on the business blog CleanTechies, results of the latest Clean Energy Patent Growth Index (CEPGI) are highlighted. The CEPGI, put out quarterly by the Cleantech Group at the law firm of Heslin Rothenberg Farley & Mesiti P.C., has been tracking innovation activity in the clean tech industry since 2002, as measured by granted U.S. patents in the field.

Even after U.S. District Court Judge Lucy Koh ordered Samsung to pay Apple approximately $1 billion in damages this past August, industry insiders insisted that there would be several more chapters in the pair's infamous infringement dispute. However, now that Koh has dismissed a number of intervening motions, the smartphone patent wars may be at least one step closer to their conclusion.