Well, here's a bit of a surprise. We had just been saying that of course the US would sign onto ACTA, but apparently it's no sure thing. Jamie Love, who is pretty well connected with what's going on with ACTA, mentioned on Twitter that US officials are seriously considering dropping ACTA, after "losing" to the EU on the question of whether or not patents would be included. The US did not want patents in ACTA, while Europe did and Europe has likely won that battle. While the US is still pushing for them to be taken out, it seems unlikely at this point. Because of that, US officials are apparently honestly thinking about not signing. Love does note that Stan McCoy, who led the negotiations, isn't too worried about the patent issue, but others in the administration believe it's a big deal.

This is definitely news - though, in the end I still can't see the US bailing on ACTA. The USTR has been so involved in the process, and has been so self-congratulatory all along with this latest draft, that it would be a huge political letdown not to sign the document. My guess is that it will get signed (and the US will be among the first to sign it), with those involved suggesting that we'll just ignore anything we don't like (as we've done in the past on other international agreements). Still, wouldn't it be something if the US actually bailed out on ACTA?

Meanwhile, apparently in an effort to highlight just how screwed up the whole ACTA process is, the US Patent and Trademark Office, which has been heavily involved in the ACTA negotiations with the USTR as well, has apparently refused to meet with concerned individuals about ACTA until after it's signed. This is how the US government listens to stakeholders? "We'll only talk to you after it's too late to fix?" Comforting.