Re: [Patents] gnu & patents

[Gregory Aharonian <srctran@world.std.com>]

>Would the software patents be legalised in the EU, there will be
>two alternatives for any good programmer:
>1. to violate the patents openly, as a mean of 'civil disobedience'
>2. to violate the patents after going underground first.

In Europe, unless you are making a lots of and lots of profits with
your software, and unless the patent is good, no one is going come
after you with their software patent.  Loser-pays is a very good
deterrent to people asserting stupid software patents.

Since there are few software patents that are good for applications that
are making lots and lots of money in Europe, few of you have anything
to worry about.  No need to go underground, and extremely unimpressive
to openly violate the patent.

Indeed, do some calculations. EPO has already issued lots of software
patents.  What ones have been asserted against individuals and/or
SMEs, and successfully asserted? The same question at the national level.
And assuming you calculate these statistics, calculate the statistics
for other industries such electronics in general, or biotech.

Greg Aharonian