More than a year has passed since the European Parliament’s historic rejection of the Commission’s and Council’s software patent bill. Now this zombie legislation is shambling through parliament again: on October 11 or 12, the EP is set to vote in Brussels on two competing motions for a resolution on future European patent policy.
Software Patents - back like a bad smell (Open Rights Group)
It's never too late to have an opinion, I suppose. It's the same arguments, different door. It seems the agenda of patent law harmonisation will never go away. As I was writing more that a year ago, this, strangely enough, always goes towards harmonise up - that is make the broadest possible treatment, as opposed to the minimum common denominator.
It is true, that there are powerful stakeholders - mainly patent law firms, patent/IP farms, to a lesser extent technology companies.
Nowadyas the majority of the software industry uses the patent laws for as a defense weapon anyway. There are parasitic companies and the odd litigious ones, but they are exceptions and usually end up in PR disastres.
Why feed the IP parasites?
Write your MEP/MP what do you think about it
Brussels, 21 September 2006 -- Commissioner McCreevy proclaims blissful ignorance about the consequences of the European Patent Litigation Agreement (EPLA). In a series of six non-answers to Members of the European parliament, the Commission reveals that until now it is unable to comment on cost, judicial independence, jurisprudence and treaty-related concerns. Meanwhile McCreevy keeps praising the virtues of said draft agreement.
Commission unable to answer MEPs on Patent Litigation Agreement (FFII)
You might want to read what the FFII say/do about it
