Thanks to Lawrence Liang lawrenceliang@vsnl.net for routing this. FN

http://www.greens-efa.org/en/press/detail.php?id=1445&lg=en

Bruxelles/Brussel, 17 June 2003,

Patent vote fails Europe's software programmers

Unlimited patents will be disastrous for the European software industry and SMEs

The Legal Affairs Committee of the European Parliament today adopted a report that allows for the unlimited patenting of software which will, in one swoop, entrench the market dominance of multinational companies, force small software firms out of business and bring to an end the European free software movement.

With precise briefing from the Commission - where the bureaucrat responsible is a former employee of the UK patents office, and by the European Patent Office (EPO) - which pockets money on every patent it grants, the rapporteur, British socialist Arlene McCarthy, has defended a confused report that is full of contradictions. In doing this she has a strong backing from Conservatives but fierce criticism from her own political group.

UK and German MEPs, in rejecting amendments to the report, have ignored the opinions of the Economic and Social Council, the Industry committee, the Culture committee, 140,000 people and 30 leading software scientists who signed two petitions to the Parliament, as well as the 95% of the European citizens who took part in a European Commission public consultation.

The EPO has been illegally granting patents for computer programs for two decades. This practise completely contradicts the Munich convention, which in 1973 established the EPO and decided that computer programs and other rules of organisation and calculation were not patentable inventions under European law.

Dany Cohn-Bendit MEP (Greens - Fr) Co-president of the Greens/EFA group and chairman of a conference earlier this year on software patents and SMEs, said: "This patent report is an insult even to the principle of free trade. Pretending to protect inventors and their inventions, it instead allows multinationals to lock up the market."

Mercedes Echerer MEP (Greens - A), member of the Culture Committee, said: "It is truly regrettable that some of my colleagues are so confused about the nature of information technology. Ideas and algorithms are already protected under copyright. A computer program, on the other hand, is like a kitchen recipe - all that is needed is a pencil and paper to write it down. Patents already protect technical inventions - there is no reason to extended them to cover software."

"This legalisation, as it stands, represents the death of the European software industry, and the death of the free and open-source software industry which, by more than a coincidence, is primarily a European sector. If implemented, it would conclude the transfer of our data-processing control to the US. You can be sure that the report will have a very bumpy ride when it goes to plenary in September with one third of committee members in opposition."

Neil McCormick MEP (EFA - Scotland), member of the Legal Affairs and Internal Market Committee, said: "This is a matter of great public concern. It is important to give incentives to inventions, but this does not and should not cover the essentially logical and mathematical work of software development. There is a real danger that legal development of the kind favoured by the majority in the Legal Affairs Committee will hinder innovative development by small firms, not protect it."

For further press information: Helmut Weixler Head of Press Office The Greens in the European Parliament Tel: (Bxl) +32 2 2844683 phone: 0032 475 671 340 fax: 0032 2 2844944 mobile phone: 0032-475-67 13 40 hweixler@europarl.eu.int

THE GREENS/EFA in the European Parliament