Software patent debate
Software patent
Debate
Free software
List of patents
TRIPS Agreement
Patent Cooperation Treaty
European Patent Convention
Canada
United Kingdom
United States
European Patent Office
United Kingdom
The software patent debate is the argument about the extent to which, as a matter of public policy, it should be possible to patent software and computer-implemented inventions. Policy debate on software patents has been active for years. The opponents to software patents have gained more visibility with less resources through the years than their pro-patent opponents. Arguments and critiques have been focused mostly on the economic consequences of software patents.
One aspect of the debate has focused on the proposed European Union directive on the patentability of computer-implemented inventions, also known as the "CII Directive" or the "Software Patent Directive," which was ultimately rejected by the EU Parliament in July 2005.
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