So Poland blocked acceptance of a bill for software patents in Europe, for which I am ever so grateful. Software patents are evil. Think about it: about anything that is in any course for computer science, can be patented. It's just a matter of who applies for it first. As a net result, indepentent software houses are doomed, only the really big companies (Microsoft, Adobe) can ever hope to gain enough leverage in patents to get the other of their back ("You let go of me if I let you be"). As independent software house, you'll just be threading on one software patent after the other, making it impossible to do anything at all.
And now, it turns out Microsoft applied for — and got granted — patents for a few more basic concepts. The horror.
The idea behind a patent is that a small brilliant inventor is able to register their idea, gain protection, but after a period of time the idea becomes open. The basic principle was created to stop inventors taking their ideas to the grave, while allowing them to get some money from the period of exclusivity.
The problem is that a small inventor can't afford to sue a large corporation, while a large corporation can afford to sue anyone they please. Thus the small fellow gains no real protection, and the big faceless corporations can bully with impunity. Added to this was the stupid US policy of granting patents to dubious inventions.
While something shouldn't be patentable, mathematics and probably most of software, I would like to see a major overhaul of patent and copyright laws, on a pan European scale. Patents and copyright should expire, ideas must move into the puiblic domain, companies should not be able to sit on monopolies, it's very bad for the competition, and even for themselves in the long run.
If Disney is allowed to hold on to Mickey Mouse for ever, it's not going to innovate, and that is ultimatly bad for the company.
