Re: [Patents] Re: IBM, Microsoft, BEA Snub W3C

[Simo Sorce <simo.sorce@xsec.it>]

On Thu, 2003-04-24 at 00:17, Stephen Compall wrote:
> I would go one step further and insist on lobbying for implementation
> of *true* royalty-free standards; that is, those that can legally be
> implemented in GPL software.  Field-of-use restrictions (such as those
> allowed in the current W3C Patent Policy [draft?]) are not acceptable,
> and if we find standards defined elsewhere (not in W3C), or we have to
> define our own standards.

The problem is patents on software (and business methods), full stop.

Other schemes are just doomed to fail. For example, you simply can't
have "your" standards because they can be patented and you may even do
not know of it until it's too late.
And remember that companies that have patents will rather wait until
it's to late to go public and collect (extort) royalties from others
hard work, than telling you forefront that you maybe using their patent.

The hard part of software business is implementation, not invention, so
copyright is the right "protection" method, patents are over-protection
and basically only a way to put a barrier and stiffle competition.

It is not a case, imho, that they are pushed so hard now that there is
an economical crises. Generally, economical crises are not only bad,
they have also a good face; they should make competition harder and put
out of business old broken companies and let new sane ones take their
place. Now, the old broken companies are trying to spend their money to
protect themselves against one of the fundamental capitalism concepts,
cometition. Backing software patents is a really bad thing, and one of
the first step to make the capitalist system to badly fail.

I think some people may be tempted to support them just to make this
fall happen sooner ...

The only thing that make all human be somewhat equal in regards to
everyone else and have an opportunity to rise and make a living with
it's own forces (someone call this "the American dream") is that
everyone is free to use his mind and knowledge to build a business.
Software and business methods patents simply destroy this possibility.
Btw, I think business methods patents to be even more dangerous (if at
all possible) than the more conservative software patents, however as
software now permeate all kind of business activities also software
patents are extremely dangerous.

Simo.

-- 
Simo Sorce - simo.sorce@xsec.it
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