Ken Harvey wrote:
Editorial
Patently Ridiculous
Published: March 22, 2006
Something has gone very wrong with the United States patent system.
Americans think of the granting of patents as a benevolent process
that lets inventors enjoy the fruits of their hard work and
innovations. But times have changed. The definition of what is
patentable has slowly evolved to include business practices and broad
ideas. The fact that the Smucker's company went to court over patents
on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches might have provoked chuckles.
But it became a symbol of a system gone awry.
Ken,
Maybe we should get someone to patent ideas like parliament, a
constitution, maybe free speech. That might wake the legislators up.
We have our own case of absurd patentitis here.
The Pharmacy Guild, after having representatives participate in the
early discussions about HealthConnect, apparently decided to go out and
patent such a system in Australia. This apparently all occurred unknown,
initially, to the government or the other participants in those
meetings, whose intellectual property presumably contributed to the
ideas that were ultimately patented.
Whether this patent has contributed to the shelving of HealthConnect by
the government, I do not know. But I wonder.
Greg
--
Greg Twyford
Information Management & Technology Program Officer
Canterbury Division of General Practice
E-mail: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Ph.: 02 9787 9033
Fax: 02 9787 9200
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