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"...eliminating court trials including jury trials in patent cases by expanding the authority and procedures of the Patent and Trademark Office to make it the t
by keithpeter 14y ago
"...eliminating court trials including jury trials in patent cases by expanding the authority and procedures of the Patent and Trademark Office to make it the trier of patent cases, subject to limited appellate review in the courts..."
UK perspective: what do people here think of this suggestion, perhaps even as a temporary 'damper' on the patent troll business model? Raising the barrier to litigation would perhaps slow down the rate at which these cases occur. In the UK, we have a special court for trying IP cases, and the barrier to litigation is very high, perhaps too high for some small companies. Of course, the EU does not allow the granting of software patents.
- jandrewrogers 14y agoThe EU does not allow business method patents, which is what most people actually mean when they say "software patents". It does allow computer algorithm patents.
- rwmj 14y agoActually the EU clearly disallows software patents in very plain language: http://www.epo.org/law-practice/legal-texts/html/epc/2010/e/ar52.html http://www.epo.org/law-practice/legal-texts/html/epc/2010/e/...
- jandrewrogers 14y agoDefine "software patents". That "very plain language" only excludes business method patents i.e. "...on a computer" or "...on the internet" patents. These are not computer algorithm patents (for example, a new sorting or encryption algorithm). The term "software patent" does not denote a distinct class of patent. Computer algorithms are patentable in the EU. I can think of many, many examples of computer algorithms that are patented in the EU (e.g. crypto patents, compression algorithms, codecs, etc.).
- keithpeter 14y agoThanks for the clarification. 'Business method' patents would I take it be the ones like Blackboard's patents for course management. My original point stands: I can't see the logic in any district court having jurisdiction over patent cases.
- rwmj 14y agoPatents have certainly been granted, but the language I link to above is very clear about the validity of such patents: "The following in particular shall not be regarded as inventions [...]: schemes, rules and methods for performing mental acts, playing games or doing business, and programs for computers." [my emphasis]