Microsoft Patents the Censoring of Speech

theodp writes "On Tuesday, the USPTO awarded Microsoft a patent for the Automatic Censorship of Audio Data for Broadcast, an invention that addresses 'producing censored speech that has been altered so that undesired words or phrases are either unintelligible or inaudible.' The patent describes methods for muting offensive words and replacing them with less offensive versions, and 'a third alternative provides for overwriting the undesired word with a masking sound, i.e., "bleeping" the undesired word with a tone.' After all, there's nothing worse than being subjected to offensive speech when you're shooting someone in the head."

Comments

Re:Maybe This Is a Good Thing

[Anonymous Coward]

My dear friend, please tell me what part of this patent is software per se. These are basic method and system claims, not Beauregard claims. Surely it covers software that performs the claimed methods, or a computer running software that enables it to behave as the claimed system, but it also covers someone doing the same thing with a mechanical system (if you can imagine such a thing, with gears and pulleys everywhere!). What makes software so special, other than it is central to your sheltered world view?

Re:Useless

[SanityInAnarchy]

Combinations of even one four-letter word, when used creatively, can be quite educational.