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:Author: 		Tobias Schlitt
:Date:			Wed, 19 Nov 2008 23:29:46 +0100
:Revision: 		1
:Copyright:		CC by-nc-sa


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Software patent directive REJECTED
==================================

:Description:
    **A great victory in a huge war.** **Thanks to all you
    anti-sorftware-patent-activists!**

Via Jan Wildeboer and `FFII`__:

.. __: http://www.ffii.org

    **Strasbourg, 6 July 2005** -- The European Parliament today decided by a
    large majority of 648 votes to reject the directive "on the patentability
    of computer implemented inventions", also known as the software patent
    directive. This rejection was the logical answer to the Commission's
    refusal to restart the legislative process in February and the Council's
    unwillingness to take the will of the European Parliament and national
    parliaments into account.  The FFII congratulates the European Parliament
    on its clear "No" to bad legislative proposals and procedures.

    This is a great victory for those who have campaigned to ensure that
    European innovation and competitiveness is protected from monopolisation
    of software functionalities and business methods. It marks the end of an
    attempt by the European Commission and governmental patent officials to
    impose detrimental and legally questionable practises of the European
    Patent Office (EPO) on the member states.  However the questions created
    by this practise remain unsolved.  FFII believes that the Parliament's
    work, in particular the 21 cross-party compromise amendments, can provide
    a good basis on which future solutions, both at the national and European
    level, can build.

    **Jonas Maebe, FFII Board Member, comments on the outcome of today's
    vote:**

        This result clearly shows that thorough analysis, genuinely concerned
        citizens and factual information have more impact than free ice-cream,
        boatloads of hired lobbyists and outsourcing threats. I hope this turn
        of
        events can give some people faith again in the European decision
        making
        process. I also hope that it will encourage the Council and Commission
        to
        emulate the European Parliament to improve transparency and the
        ability of
        stakeholders to participate in the decision-making process
        irrespective of
        their size.

    **Hartmut Pilch, president of FFII, explains why FFII supported the move
    for rejection in its voting recommendations:**

        In recent days, the big holders of EPO-granted software patents and
        their
        MEPs, who had previously been campaigning for the Council's "Common
        Position", joined the call for rejection of the directive because it
        became clear that the 21 cross-party amendments championned by
        Rhoitová, Buzek, Rocard and Duff were very likely to be adopted
        by
        the Parliament.  It was well noticeable that support for these
        amendments
        or a substantial part thereof was becoming the mainstream opinion in
        all
        political groups.  Yet there would not have been much of a point in
        such a
        vote.  We rather agree to the assessment of the situation as given by
        Othmar Karas MEP in the Plenary yesterday: a No was the only logical
        answer to the unconstructive attitude and legally questionable
        manuevers
        of the Commission and Council, by which this so-called Common Position
        had
        come about in the first place.

    The FFII also wishes to thank all those people who have taken the time to
    contact their representatives either by email, phone or in person. We also
    want to thank the numerous volunteers who have given so generously of
    their time and energy. This is your victory as well as the Parliament's.

**A great victory in a huge war.** **Thanks to all you
anti-sorftware-patent-activists!**


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Trackbacks
==========

- La directive sur les brevets logiciels rejetée on Wed, 06 Jul 2005 14:39:06 +0200 in ZeFredz's Blog
  
  Le parlement européen a rejeté la directive sur les brevets logiciels
  proposée par la commission. C'est une victoire pour le libre et le monde
  de l'informatique européenne en général, mais elle n'est que
  provisoire... restons sur nos garde....

- Europe says NO to software patents on Wed, 06 Jul 2005 17:09:28 +0200 in Jacques Marneweck's Blog
  
  I'm sure programmers in Europe are celerbrating the fact that the European
  Parliment REJECTED the passing of making software patents in Europe by
  voting against it in a huge margin of 648 votes against to 14 for the
  directive and...

- Software patents rejected in Europe on Wed, 06 Jul 2005 20:46:53 +0200 in S.S. Intrepid
  
  I imagine that Bruce Perens will spend much of the day in celebration: the
  European Parliament overwhelmingly rejected the software patents directive
  today in a landslide vote, 648-14.
	"We buried a bad law and did so
  without flowers,'' said...


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