European patent protesters: 'Innovation--yes!'

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Read the first part of my comment

In real world features its very easy to determine prior art:

http://www.fisher-price.com/us/rescueheroes/product.asp?id=30412

Not so in software. The amendments the EU Parliament made were to block pure data processing patents, i.e. algorithms, they specially permit software controlling other things, even giving an example of such a valid patent that includes software as part of it.

"If they coded it the same way I did (chances are they did), then they can't use it and must come up with another way of doing it,"
Don't release the code and they have to invent the algorithm themselves.

This is why the courts forced Microsoft to disclose its interfaces, because such details couldn't be determined from the code!

Posted by: Nigel Johnstone   Posted on: 02/18/05 You are currently: a Guest | Members login | Terms of Use

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