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BRUSSELS: In a rare move, the European Parliament has demanded that a controversial proposal for a law on software patents be scrapped and that the debate begin anew.
The proposed law is intended to harmonise the patent rules of the 25 countries in the European Union. Current laws do not permit software patents, but some have been registered in recent years.
The decision was roundly welcomed by opponents of software patents, who assert that patent protection hinders innovation by software developers. Groups representing patent holders, who see patents as a way of ensuring that inventors are rewarded for their efforts, were divided over the latest development in the often heated three-year-long debate over the proposal.
Until recently, Parliament, which favors tightly limiting the scope of patent protection for software-related inventions, appeared at loggerheads with the union’s 25 national governments. Those countries agreed in principle in May to a version of the proposed law that would have permitted a more liberal software patent regime in Europe. In the last four months, however, some countries have backed away from the agreement.
Finance ministers were scheduled to adopt that agreement on Thursday, but the vote was called off as more and more countries raised doubts about the text.
“It is very important to go back to Square One with this directive,†said Jerzy Buzek, a member of the European Parliament. “It is very necessary to have this directive, but not in the shape proposed by the member states.â€Â
Source: financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=83128
The proposed law is intended to harmonise the patent rules of the 25 countries in the European Union. Current laws do not permit software patents, but some have been registered in recent years.
The decision was roundly welcomed by opponents of software patents, who assert that patent protection hinders innovation by software developers. Groups representing patent holders, who see patents as a way of ensuring that inventors are rewarded for their efforts, were divided over the latest development in the often heated three-year-long debate over the proposal.
Until recently, Parliament, which favors tightly limiting the scope of patent protection for software-related inventions, appeared at loggerheads with the union’s 25 national governments. Those countries agreed in principle in May to a version of the proposed law that would have permitted a more liberal software patent regime in Europe. In the last four months, however, some countries have backed away from the agreement.
Finance ministers were scheduled to adopt that agreement on Thursday, but the vote was called off as more and more countries raised doubts about the text.
“It is very important to go back to Square One with this directive,†said Jerzy Buzek, a member of the European Parliament. “It is very necessary to have this directive, but not in the shape proposed by the member states.â€Â
Source: financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=83128
