The software patent fight in the EU has been going on for years. Some European countries allow software patents and others do not. The EU is attempting to establish a unified patent system to replace all of the individual countries patent systems. Personally, I think that this is a good idea.
Where the problem arises is that there is a bitter fight about whether the unified patent system will allow software patents or deny them. The opponents of software patents in Europe have consistently fought to block the entire unification process to prevent the European wide adoption of software patents. I think that we should change our position to agreeing to the unified European patent system if that system refuses to patent software.
I agree with Red Hat that an abstract idea does not become patentable simply by writing it into software as Alice has claimed repeatedly in their briefs to various courts.
Another false idea which has been claimed many times in software patent claims is that software changes the design of a computer and therefore the patent claim is partially derived from the hardware. This idea makes no sense to any person who understands how computers work. It apparently seems reasonable to enough lawyers and judges that it often appears in software patents. I would like to see the hardware patent derivative idea thrown out by the Supreme Court.
If the Supreme Court throws out the hardware derivation fallacy and rules that abstract ideas do not become patentable by writing them into software then I see that decision as de facto abolishing all software patents.
The software patent fight in the EU has been going on for years. Some European countries allow software patents and others do not. The EU is attempting to establish a unified patent system to replace all of the individual countries patent systems. Personally, I think that this is a good idea.
Where the problem arises is that there is a bitter fight about whether the unified patent system will allow software patents or deny them. The opponents of software patents in Europe have consistently fought to block the entire unification process to prevent the European wide adoption of software patents. I think that we should change our position to agreeing to the unified European patent system if that system refuses to patent software.
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Steve Stites