[pp.int.general] software patents

[Reinier Bakels]

Many pirates have a background in IT, and many were involved in the political debate about software patents when the European directive for "computer-implemented inventions" was on the table - from 2002 when it was proposed by the Council, until 2005 when it was rejected by the European Parliament.

Recently I noted that there is some confusion on the priorities in the field of patents in 2010. Some people still believe that software patents are something very special that deserves special attention - and disapproval. In learned in recent years, that patents in almost all fields are used in a manner that is detrimental for society, *even* in medicine where patents are often supposed to be indispensable to recover the multibillion R&D investments. Yes, I am aware that software patents are particularly dtreimental for a number of reasons, but none of these reasons is really exclusive to software.

In other words, I would propose that PP takes a critical stance on patents in *all* fields, not specifically in software!

reinier
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