[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

[linux] Juridical Coup at the European Patent Office



EuroLinux Alliance: Juridical Coup at the European Patent Office
=====================================================
http://linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2001-11-07-013-20-NW-LL

Nov 7, 2001, 21 :01 UTC (16 Talkback[s]) (1873 reads)

Munich, Paris. 2001-11-05 - Without waiting for the expected vote by the 
European Union of a directive on the patentatibility of software, the 
European Patent Office just published a new examination directive which 
extends the realm of the European patent practice to software, business 
methods and mathematics [1,2].

This decision constitutes a violation of the European democracy and a 
provocation against European governments which had publicly stated last 
November 2000 that they wanted tighter political control over the European 
Patent Office and decided to preserve the exception for computer programmes. 
[3] This shameful and unacceptable decision also constitutes a violation of 
Article 22 of of the European Patent Convention which stipulates that only 
the Enlarged Board of Appeal may take decisions on significant patent policy 
issues. However, the European Patent Office has extended the realm of the 
European patent practice through hidden decisions of technical boards in 
order not to ask their opinion to European governments. The European Patent 
Office has tried to circumvent the democratic control of European Governments 
through adventurous administrative processes. The European Patent Office 
ignores its ruling authorities. [4] The European Patent Office scorns the 80% 
of software companies which are against software patents. [5, 6]

EuroLinux demands that European governments act firmly.

(...)

-- 
	Bon amusement,

	Alain
+--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
|  Dr Alain EMPAIN      Bioinformatique, Génétique Moléculaire B43,
|  Fac. Méd. Vétérinaire, Univ. de Liège, Sart-Tilman / B-4000 Liège  
|       Alain.EMPAIN@ulg.ac.be
|       WORK:+32 4 366 3821 Fax: +32 4 366 4122   GSM:+32 497 701764
|       HOME:+32 85 512341  -- Rue des Martyrs,7  B-4550 Nandrin

[ Soyez précis dans vos sujets svp afin de déterminer directement  ]
[ le type de demande...                                            ]
[ Pour vous (dés)inscrire, aller sur http://unixtech.be/ml.php     ]
[ Archives de la mailing list: http://archives.unixtech.be/linux/  ]
[ http://unixtech.be              Contact: listmaster@unixtech.be  ]