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Re: Strawmen and Urban Legends


From: Alfred M. Szmidt
Subject: Re: Strawmen and Urban Legends
Date: Wed, 3 Jan 2007 15:55:55 +0100 (CET)

   > The EPO is already doing a great job as far as "software patents" are
   > concerned.

   Yes, they reject most of them.  [...]

That is why the EPO has granted more than 30000 software patents, and
the number of patents is rising by something like 3000 per year?

   So get over it.  It hasn't "destroyed" the software business.  In fact,
   it has protected many small developers from larger companies, like
   Microsoft.

That is a short sighted way of viewing things, I suggest you recall
what happend with LZW and MP3.  Just because it hasn't destroyed
things yet, doesn't mean that it isn't destroying things.

   If you don't have a Patent on your software invention, Bill Gates
   can take it, for free, and give you NOTHING in return.

Yes, as it should work.  Software is like ideas.  If Bill wants to
make a copy of my little program, then he has to abide by copyright
law.  If he thinks my idea is lovley, he is free to copy it, as it
should be.  Software patents make no sense, never did, and never will.
Several good places explain this, http://nosoftwarepatents.com and
http://swpat.ffii.org come to mind.

   Patents protect the little guy.

The little guy doesn't have enough money to spend on getting a patent,
let alone enforcing it and not getting sued for patent infrinment from
the big guy who has a couple dozen if not hundreds of patents already.




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