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The Patent Act of 2005

Posted by Hemos on from the the-joy-of-the-legal-age dept.

stevelaniel writes "The Patent Act of 2005 has been proposed, and at least one law professor has described it as "a surprisingly broad proposal to reform patent law. Among other significant changes, it proposes to scrap the first to invent standard in favor of a first to file standard. Other notables include imposing a rigorous duty of candor on applicants, limits on damages/injunctions and new standards for anticipating prior art." The Promote The Progress weblog is compiling source documents on the Act."

5 of 27 comments (clear)

  1. this is supposed to make it better? by override11 · · Score: 3, Insightful

    OK, so instead of 'who made it first', its going to be 'who files the patent first'?? Sounds like crap to me! So, someone invents something, and sells it in their home town. Someone else see's it, and rushes off to file a patent. Now the inventor is screwed, and how is this better?? What they need to do is educate the patent officers so they dont accept bull-crap patents on things like double clicking.

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    No I didnt spell check this post...
  2. Improving challenge? by redelm · · Score: 3, Insightful
    I'd be more impressed if I saw a better challenge process in place. I don't much care if questionable patents are granted so long as they can be easily challenged. Preferably in: some sort of pre-grant filings to the examiner, post-grant challenge to the USPTO, and courts who do not automatically defer to the examiner's judgement.

  3. Why First To File Sucks by Doug+Dante · · Score: 3, Insightful

    "They patented THAT?!?! I've been doing that in this product for YEARS!"

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    The world will not get better through technology. We must seek to be better people.
  4. Re:First to file? by GreyWolf3000 · · Score: 2, Insightful
    I think what this might mean is that companies that can hire a patent lawyer team can take individual's ideas and patent them. I hope not, though, please correct me if I'm wrong.

    This would mean a huge blow for proprietary software over open source software, because copyright would no longer protect us. Our ideas could be stolen retroactively.

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    Slashdot: Where people pretend to be twice as smart as they really are by behaving like children.
  5. Re:First to file? by Bruha · · Score: 2, Insightful

    Agreed, can you see Microsoft stealing any and every idea from Linux and patenting things that nobody bothered to Patent.

    Also this would be bad for software development as companies would be forced to submit thousands of patent ideas before actually building the product and if they decide against the product nobody else could do it because they'd have to pay the patent holder.

    The patent office would be snowballed instantly.

    Patents should stay as First to Invent.