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UK Firm Patents Software Downloads

Posted by timothy on from the handy-things-patents-thousands-of-uses dept.

spike1 writes "The Register has a story about BTG (British Technology Group) acquiring a patent on software downloads ... If this is one area of tech that's not covered by prior art, I don't know what is. Although, the Reg doesn't include a link to the actual patents, out-law.com is also carrying the story and contains links to the patents, and looking at some of their patent synopses, it looks like it's a pretty broad brush."

2 of 56 comments (clear)

  1. IIRC, this stupid patent has already been patented by bluephone · · Score: 3, Interesting

    IIRC, didn't Symantec get a patent on this very idea a year ago, relating to it's LiveUpdate system, but promised not to enfore it? I mean, it was a stupid patent then, but apparently the bar is even lower now. Not only can you patent things you didn't invent and with plenty of prior art, you can patent stuff that's already been patented!

    --
    jX [ Make everything as simple as possible, but no simpler. - Einstein ]
  2. Re:microsoft by Dachannien · · Score: 3, Interesting

    What I'd like to see is, shall we say, option 1a:

    Microsoft challenges the patent and eventually wins, but uses its courtroom manipulation mojo to make the trial last as long as possible, thus causing BTG to collapse into bankruptcy under the weight of its own idiocy. Maybe that will be a bit of incentive to stop further patent stupidity from other firms.