Les brevets sur les logiciels et leur danger pour le shareware

Europe Shareware software patents newsletter #7
16 September 2003

Webpage: http://www.europe-shareware.org/pages/brevets/brevets.fr.html
PDF    : http://www.europe-shareware.org/pages/brevets/newsletter7.us.pdf
Archive: http://www.europe-shareware.org/pages/brevets/newsletter7.us.html



CONTENTS:

1. Conference in the European Parliament

2. Swpat directive: article in The Economist

3. OECD survey

4. Burst vs Microsoft

5. Coverage in Poland

6. Eolas "plugin" patent: news

7. German ISP against software patents

8. EU automation industry on software patents




----
1. Conference in the European Parliament

There will be a new conference on software patents in the European
Parliament on Wednesday, September 17th.

The Bureau of the EUropean Consumers (BEUC), represented by Jim Murray, 
will explain why the directive text as it stands is against the interests
of consumers. 

Also Tim Berners Lee (president, World Wide Web Consortium, W3C) will
deliver a speech on his experience with software patents in web standards
establishment. It is to be known that the W3C decided earlier this year,
after a long discussion, to exclude software patents from web standards.

Other leading scientists and economists will be present, see below the
programme of the conference:

SOFTWARE PATENTS : THE CHOICE IS YOURS
A conference chaired by Daniel COHN-BENDIT MEP
Wednesday 17 September 16.00 -18.30
European Parliament Brussels Room PHS 5B001
http://www.greens-efa.org

15.00	 	Press conference in briefing room

16:00 	Introduction by Daniel Cohn-Bendit MEP Chair of the Green/Efa
Group in EP

16:10 	Presentation of the petition of the scientists (http://
www.upgrade-cepis.org/issues/2003/3/up4-3Petition.pdf) 
	Dr. Paul Klint*, President of the European Association of Programming
Languages and Systems (EAPLS), 
	
16:30 	Presentation of the letter of the economists: Dr. Luc Soete,
Founder of Merit (Maastricht Economic Research Institute on Innovation
and Technology 
http://www.zdnet.fr/actualites/technologie/0,39020809,39116150,00.htm

16:45	European consumer's point of view: Jim Murray, Director of the BEUC

17:00 	Tim Berners-Lee, Director World Wide Web Consortium, founder of the www
	online statement, debate and chat (videoconference)*
	
17:30	Administration that switched to open source software (Germany) Jens
Mülhaus Member City Council city of Munich

17:45	CEO of European SMEs testimony about software patents :
Hakon Wium Lie, CEO of OPERA (web browser Opera, used on all platforms,
also used on cell-phones and PDAs for eg. Motorola) www.opera.com
	
18:00 	Debate

18:30	Conclusion

Translation is available in all official EU languages

Participation is free however it is necessary to register by Monday
15.09.03 by email with lvandewalle@europarl.eu.int in order to get an
access badge to EP




----
2. Swpat directive: article in The Economist

"A clicking bomb"
http://economist.com/printedition/displayStory.cfm?Story_ID=2043416

The Economist ran a balanced article, that shows how strong the
opposition to the directive is and outlines that the MEP in charge of the
text is starting to listen to the software sector by trying to soften her
position. She has now included in her amendments the "controllable forces
of nature" provision.

A few quotes:

  « [...] as software is often built on the 
    achievements of others, writing code could 
    become a legal hurdle race. By analogy, if 
    Haydn had patented the symphony form, 
    Mozart would have been in trouble. »

  « Larger software firms in the Business 
    Software Alliance are happy. Smaller firms 
    and open-source lobby groups, such as the 
    Foundation for a Free Information 
    Infrastructure, are up in arms. They think 
    the directive's lack of clarity will make 
    American-style patents possible, and are 
    arguing for a more watertight definition. »

  « Arlene McCarthy, the rapporteur of the 
    European Parliament's committee for legal 
    affairs and the internal market, has now 
    proposed an additional test for 
    patentability: an invention must teach a 
    new way to use “controllable forces of 
    nature” (really) and have an “industrial 
    application”. »




----
3. OECD survey

http://www.oecd.org/sti/ipr

The OECD is running a survey on "Intellectual Property Rights (IPR),
Innovation and Economic Performance" 

Asbract: 

  « Changes in IPR, along with developments 
    in industrial innovation and the 
    economy at large, have altered the 
    relationships among IPR, innovation and 
    economic performance. A new OECD study 
    will investigate these changes and 
    provide empirical information to guide 
    ongoing policy debates about IPR. »

See: http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/12/28/2498379.pdf


A questionare has been posted on the Danish patentoffice website:
http://www.dkpto.dk/nyheder/OECD_Questionnaire-TIP.xls

Deadline for replies according to the danish patent office is 29/9.

It is to be known that the Danish Patent Office is leading the lobbying
efforts in favour of a european patent insurrance system.




----
4. Burst vs Microsoft

"Microsoft muss nach verschwundenen E-Mails suchen"
http://www.heise.de/newsticker/data/wst-11.09.03-000/

In the Burst vs Microsoft case on a software patent infringement, the
judge asked Microsoft to find 70 emails related to illegal behaviour from
Microsoft in Microsoft's backup tapes (it should be noted that Microsoft
will avoid such situations in the future since it adopted a DRM solution
for its emails that erase all data after 90 days).

This case, which started in summer 2002, is about a patented streaming
technology from Burst for which Microsoft tried to get a license. It
didn't get the license but thanks to the negociations, it had access to
the technology and integrated it in its Corona video format. 
Then Microsoft modified Windows in such a way that Burst's technology
could not run correctly and put pressure on Intel and Real Networks to
not adopt Burst's technology.

Kind of "traditional" cheating strategy from Microsoft (see Netscape vs
Microsoft case).

A few quotes:

  « US- Bezirksrichter J. Frederick Motz 
    hat angeordnet, dass Microsoft 25.000 
    Backup-Tapes durchsuchen muss, um zu 
    überprüfen, ob rund 70 E-Mails, die 
    Verhandlungen mit Burst.com betreffen, 
    eventuell gelöscht worden sind. »

  « Zwei Jahre lang hatte Microsoft mit 
    Burst.com über eine Lizenznahme von 
    deren Streaming-Technologie verhandelt 
    und soll Ideen und Konzepte, die in 
    diesen Verhandlungen vorgestellt wurden, 
    in sein neues Videoformat Corona 
    integriert haben. Auch soll Microsoft 
    Windows so geändert haben, dass die 
    Software von Burst auf Windows-
    Plattformen nicht mehr korrekt 
    funktionierte. »

  « Zudem soll der Software-Riese Druck 
    auf andere Firmen wie Intel und 
    RealNetworks ausgeübt haben, damit 
    diese Burst.com- Technologie nicht 
    lizenzieren. »




----
5. Coverage in Poland

Poland seems to be looking closely at the current software patents debate
in the EU, since this directive will directly affect its innovative companies.

Politika and Computer World Polska ran articles about this subject with
Jozef Halbersztadt, patent examiner of the Polish Patent Office.
He criticizes the way the directive was drafted and shows why this text
will make legal business methods patents.


You can find here the two articles (in Polish):


Trwa europejska debata, jak chronic´ programy komputerowe. Pora, by 
Polska sie˛ do niej wła˛czyła.  W Parlamencie Europejskim toczy sie˛
waz˙na 
debata: czy patentowa oprogramowanie komputerowe. Przygla˛damy sie˛ jej 
biernie, nawet Kongres Informatyki Polskiej nie zaje˛ła  jakiegokolwiek 
stanowiska. A przecie chodzi te o nasze interesy i ogromne pienia˛dze.
EDWIN BENDYK, JÓZEF HALBERSZTADT
http://polityka.onet.pl/162,1130608,1,0,2416-2003-35,artykul.html


Walka trwa
Z Józefem Halbersztadtem, ekspertem patentowym z Urze˛du Patentowego RP, 
rozmawia Przemysław Gamdzyk.
http://www.computerworld.pl/artykuly/35114.html




----
6. Eolas "plugin" patent: news

The "plugin" patent from Eolas is threatening the way the web works and
the W3C is taking this issue seriously as one of the greatest problems it
ever faced.
As Microsoft failed (quite strangely since prior art obviously exists) to
challenge the patent, its Internet Explorer team is currently looking at
ways to modify Internet Explorer to comply with the ruling.

Such strategies as putting a dialog between the moment when you click on
a file related to an external application and when this external
application is launched are being considered. This is technological and
user interface nonsense but the lawyers could be satisfied.

Here are some articles on this subject:

http://www.zeldman.com/

A few quotes from Jeffrey Zeldman:

- About the solutions proposed to circumvent the patent claims:
  
  « Even these clumsy, expensive, 
    painfully disruptive approaches might 
    not satisfy the patent holder. If they 
    do not, then where rich media is 
    concerned, the web could soon look 
    like 1993 all over again. »

  « The patent ruling may eventually apply 
    to other browser makers such as Opera 
    Software and Netscape, although it is 
    hard to see how Eolas could expect a 
    small company like Opera Software to 
    come up with the funds necessary to 
    develop a crippled version of its 
    browser, let alone coughing up tens or 
    hundreds of millions in penalty fees. 
    Asking the company to do so would kill 
    its browser, removing a consumer choice 
    in a market that is already low on 
    options. »

  « If the patent ruling stands, it will 
    hurt web users, site owners and 
    designers, and software companies 
    (possibly ruining some of those 
    companies) and will chill web 
    development in untold ways. »



"Saving the browser"
http://www.ozzie.net/blog/stories/2003/09/12/savingTheBrowser.html

Ray Ozzie (Ray Ozzie was the developer of the famous Lotus Notes and
founded Lotus Corporation) shows how Lotus Notes offered in the 1980s,
long before 1994 when the Eolas "plugin" patent was granted, all the
functionalities described in the patent claims. This article is a must
see for experts working on this case since Ray Ozzie clearly refers to
precise prior art.



"IE patent endgame detailed"
http://news.com.com/2100-1032_3-5074799.html

CNET ran an article about how Microsoft lost its post-trial claim against
Eolas. The article shows which kind of deep consequences web developers
will have to face.

A few quotes:

  « [...] not only Microsoft but the 
    entire Web may soon be forced to 
    make substantial adjustments--and 
    that pages around the Web and on 
    private intranets will have to be 
    rewritten to work with an altered 
    IE. »

  « Microsoft said at the meeting that 
    it believed a simple dialog box 
    inserted between the selection and 
    the launch of a Java applet or an 
    ActiveX control would maneuver IE 
    out of the patent's definition of 
    an "automated interactive 
    experience." »

  « One attendee of the meeting who 
    asked not to be named said that 
    while Microsoft's workarounds were 
    technically promising, their legal 
    soundness was uncertain. Worse, 
    this attendee said, the 
    implementation of the workarounds 
    would require a huge amount of 
    work on the part of Web authors. »

  « "When you think about this, having 
    to go around the patent highlights 
    the stupidity of the patent system," 
    he said. "Everyone in the field is 
    very saddened by the whole thing, 
    that we have to go through this 
    exercise. The W3C has worked very 
    hard to make the Web remain patent 
    free and this might be the one 
    thing that screws it all up. It's 
    really very frustrating." »




----
7. German ISP against software patents

"1&1 will EU-Richtlinie zur Softwarepatentierung verhindern"
http://www.heise.de/newsticker/data/wst-15.09.03-000/


The German ISP 1&1 [1] sent a letter to the Members of the European
Parliament to warn them about the consequences of the current directive text.

The letter says that hundred thousands of european companies rely on free
software or CGIs and that such patents as the "Shopping cart" patent can
harm more than 12.000 Internet-Shops.
Such patents are said to ban competition and innovation since software
innovation is evolutionary and not revolutionary.

A few quotes:

  « Die Firma, die ihren Stammsitz in 
    Montabaur hat und zu den größten 
    Zugangsanbietern und Webhostern in 
    Europa gehört, sieht ihre eigene 
    Existenzgrundlage und die auf 
    offenen Standards beruhende Netzwelt 
    bedroht, sollte das Gesetz 
    verabschiedet werden. »

  « "Heute selbstverständliche Dinge 
    wie E-Mail, Onlineshops oder nahezu 
    jeder ander Dienst im Internet" wären 
    bei der parlamentarischen Zustimmung 
    für die Richtlinie "in ihrer jetzigen 
    Verwendung behindert", heißt es in 
    dem Schreiben. »

  « Die rechtliche Kehrtwendung zu 
    Softwarepatenten würde eine "nicht 
    bezifferbare Anzahl funktionierender 
    Unternehmensanwendungen wertlos" oder 
    Verhandlungen über Patentnutzungen 
    notwendig machen. »

  « "Allein auf Basis unserer Technologie 
    werden heute über 12.000 
    Internet-Shops betrieben" »

  « Evolution statt Revolution herrsche 
    im Softwarebereich. So sei nur selten 
    die für den staatlichen Monopolschutz 
    geforderte "Erfindungshöhe" 
    auszumachen, die den hohen Ansprüchen 
    "regulärer" Patente entspreche. »


[1] http://www1.1und1.de/

[2] the EP0807891 "Shopping cart" patent was granted by the European
Patent Office to US company Sun Microsystems




----
8. EU automation industry on software patents

"Statement of IAONA regarding the upcoming software patent legislation on
European level"
http://www.iaona-eu.com/home/news-lesen.php?auswahl=35


Below you find a statement against the directive in it's current form
from IAONA, an organization of about 130 European enterprises in
industrial automation. 


  « Statement of IAONA regarding the upcoming 
    software patent legislation on European level
    
    During the membership assembly of IAONA 
    the participants voted that IAONA adopts the 
    following statement regarding the upcoming 
    software patents legislation in Europe:

    "IAONA is a technology organisation mainly 
    consisting of technology driven small and 
    medium sized enterprises. The membership 
    of IAONA expresses its concern regarding the 
    latest developments on software patents. 
    The planned guidelines within the European 
    Union will clearly have a negative impact on 
    technology development and will jeopardize 
    Europes leading position in many industries. 

    In order to maintain fair and equal competition 
    in the market place and avoid technology 
    monopolies established by large enterprises, 
    IAONA encourages the European Parliament to 
    drop the guideline in its present form and 
    develop a more technology friendly approach." 

    IAONA Membership Assembly, 
    September 9th 2003, Frankfurt »

 

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