Update of Software Patents Agenda

[Olivier Berger]

karin kosina a écrit :
> 
> -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
> Hash: SHA1
> 
> Hi all,
> 
>     Thanks, Olivier, for clarifying :) -- I guess somebody will sooner
> or later (probably sooner) get mad at me for insisting on that issue,
> but I want to know:
> 
> On Tue, 22 May 2001, Olivier Berger wrote:
> 
> > There are two parallel "efforts" towards software patentability :
> >
> > [...]
> > Now, for the first one, if the states which belong the European
> > Convention on Patents rule that they go to software patents, they are
> > bound by this treaty [...]
> >
> > Now, for the second one, if the European Commission makes a directive
> > (don't exactly know what role the parliament plays), each EU member
> > country has to transcript this directive in national law, which involves
> > having a  national parliament debate and vote, as far as France is
> > concerned.
> 
> Now, doesn't that mean that if there is a directive by the European
> Commission the European Patent Convention, too, will have to be changed?
> 
> I think yes, because:
> 
> Most European countries are EU members, and EU members must incorporate
> EC directives into national law.
> 
> But how can a country sign a convention that makes software patents
> illegal when those patents are legal in their own national law? They
> can't, so they will either
> 
>     -   not sign the EPC (or adopt it, or whatever you do with
>         conventions), or
>     -   the EPC will be modified to also allow for software patents
> 

I would rather think alike.

> Now, Mr. Hartmut Pilch (in his posting from Mon, 21 May 2001 08:39:01
> +0200 (CEST)) seems to disagree with that view (and he is probably
> right, and I am wrong, since I don't know much about legal issues at
> all), but I do not see the logical mistake. It seems to me that this is
> how it would work, and it's also a logical explaination why last
> december the EPC was not changed (They're waiting for a EU decision
> which will take the responsibility away from them.)
> 
> Any ideas?
> 

No sorry.... All this is damn to complex for people not working full
time on this topic :(

-- 
Olivier BERGER - Secrétaire de l'association APRIL 
APRIL (http://www.april.org) - Vive python (http://www.python.org)
Pétition contre les brevets logiciels : http://petition.eurolinux.org