Patent Case With FOSS Implications

ThousandStars writes, "SCOTUSBlog posted about the liklihood that the Supreme Court will review whether an organization can get around software patents by completing the work in other countries. This case has huge implications for OSS projects with coders in the U.S., as it may inhibit, among other things, the ability of American coders to contribute to projects that violate U.S. software patents." The Patently-O blog gives background on the case.

Comments

Microsoft is behind this!

[Yahma]

The DOJ and PTO have given their solid support to Microsoft's petition for certiorari in its battle over transnational patent infringement. This support makes grant of the petition highly likely.
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That statute allows a U.S. patentee to collect damages for foreign sales of a patented invention based on the export of one or more of its components from the U.S. Recently, the CAFC has expanded the common interpretation of the statute to include the export of software code (AT&T, Eolas) as well as to the export of elements used in a patented method (Union Carbide).

Microsoft and other large corporatations have everything to gain from this should the Supreme Court decide in favor of this. They have amassed huge patent portfolios, and would be able to effectively halt the development and distribution of a majority of OSS software out there with foreign contributors. I hope I am not the only one that finds this very disturbing.

According to my interpretation of the article, and the graphic provided, software developed totally in a foreign country (say Germany), would still create liability if it were to infringe upon a US patent!

Yahma
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