Global comparison of software patents

(as proposed by Ramanraj 26 Jan 2005)

Laws

India: Patents Act 1970, first patent law 1911
USA: US Patent Act
EU: European Patent Convention (EPC) (1973, this European agreement has been implemented into national law of EU member states quite literally, eg into German law); an attempt to make it allow software patents explicitly announced in in the Journal of the European Patent Office in 1999 has failed in 2000 due to resistance by member states. Note that the EPC is no EU treaty and extents to non-EU states as well such as Switzerland and Norway.
EU: EU Directive on Computer-Implemented Inventions proposed by the European Commission in 2002, (in favor of software patents) amended by the European Parliament in 2003 ("Parliament version", against software patents), amended by the Council of Ministers in 2004 as Political Agreement ("Council version", in favor of software patents), not yet passed as Common Position by the Council of Ministers due to opposition by Poland
TRIPS 1994, (FFII comment on TRIPS)

Patent Offices: USPTO, EPO, national European PTO
Patent professionals and their organisations such as FICPI
WIPO, Geneve
FFII (mostly ordoliberal Agenda: Free Information Infrastructure)
Free Software and Open Source People, Shareware-Association
Small Business Associations
Patent Attorneys from large enterprisesn such as Fritz Teufel (IBM), Tim Frain (Nokia)

India:
USA: USPTO, Alexandria, Virginia
EU: the European Patent Office is mainly operating at Munich (Germany) and Den Haag (Netherlands). Moreover, each nation state has their own patent office. Here is a database of European patents.

India: 2(j) new product
EU: Art 52 (1) EPC: "European patents shall be granted for any inventions which are susceptible of industrial application, which are new and which involve an inventive step."
TRIPS: Art 27: "Subject to the provisions of paragraphs 2 and 3, patents shall be available for any inventions, whether products or processes, in all fields of technology, provided that they are new, involve an inventive step and are capable of industrial application."
US Patent Act Art 101: "Whoever invents or discovers any new and useful process, machine, manufacture, or composition of matter, or any new and useful improvement thereof, may obtain a patent therefor, subject to the conditions and requirements of this title."

India: abstract theories, computer programs
EU: Art 52 (2) EPC: "The following in particular shall not be regarded as inventions ... (a) discoveries, scientific theories and mathematical methods; (b) aesthetic creations; (c) schemes, rules and methods for performing mental acts, playing games or doing business, and programs for computers, (d) presentations of information". Note that the European Patent Office tries to undermine the computer program exception for several years, which may be sanctioned by the Directive on Computer-Implemented Inventions if we get the Council Version, which would allow patents on computer programs once they have a non-defined technical effect, that is eg they run on a computer.
TRIPS: Art 10 Computer programs, whether in source or object code, shall be protected as literary works under the Berne Convention

Europe: the European Patent Office has granted 30000 of them, national patent offices have been more reluctant, although the UK patent office and the German patent office also have granted quite a few, whereas France and Italy are said to be more restrictive
US: yes, never had a Parliament decide, they crept in by caselaw

US: yes
Europe: rarely, due to weak legal status (EPC), but this will change if Europe gets the Council version of the Directive on Computer-Implemented Inventions (whereas the Parliament version will keep Europe software-patent free)

US: Jim Bessen: an empirical look at software patents http://www.researchoninnovation.org/swpat.pdf
patent insurance is sold at 0.5-1% of turnover in continental Europe, 1-2% in UK and US (this only protects agains law suits, not against the costs of adapting your business, not being able to compete)
FFII Collection of Study results

France tried that during the French Revolution in 1793, but gave up soon for it made big chaos
US: yes
EU: arguable, if guised as computer programs, eg Pension Benefit System