[ When is EFF opening up an India branch so that we can help support them on these initiatives? - Sandip ]
http://www.eff.org/Patent/
[ The actual EFF release. - Sandip ]
* EFF Announces New Patent Busting Campaign
Group to Challenge Patents Affecting Nonprofits, Free Speech
San Francisco, CA - In light of growing concerns about illegitimate software and Internet patents, EFF on Monday announced a new initiative to combat the chilling effects bad patents have on public and consumer interests.
"Patents traditionally only targeted large commercial companies," said EFF Staff Attorney Jason Schultz. "Now bad patents are threatening nonprofits, small businesses, and even individuals who use software and Internet technology." These threats target noncommercial personal use, such as building a hobbyist website or streaming a wedding video to your friends.
The new EFF initiative seeks to document these threats and fight back against them. EFF has pledged to file "re-examination" requests with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (PTO), asking the agency to revoke patents that are having negative effects on Internet innovation and free expression.
"More and more, people are using software and Internet technology to express themselves," said EFF Staff Attorney Wendy Seltzer. "Patent owners who threaten this expression are creating a chilling effect on free speech."
The EFF announcement comes on the heels of two recent public criticisms of the patent system, one by the Federal Trade Commission and the other by the National Academy of Sciences.
For this media release: <http://www.eff.org/Patent/20040419_eff_pr_patent.php>
EFF Patent Busting Project White Paper and related materials: <http://www.eff.org/Patent/>
Wired article on the campaign: <http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,63122,00.html>
Federal Trade Commission Patent Reform Report: <http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2003/10/cpreport.htm>
National Academy of Sciences Patent Reform Report: <http://www4.nationalacademies.org/news.nsf/isbn/0309089107?OpenDocument>
-- Sandip Bhattacharya sandip (at) puroga.com Puroga Technologies Pvt. Ltd. Work: http://www.puroga.com Home: http://www.sandipb.net
GPG: 51A4 6C57 4BC6 8C82 6A65 AE78 B1A1 2280 A129 0FF3
_______________________________________________ ilugd mailinglist -- [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://frodo.hserus.net/mailman/listinfo/ilugd Archives at: http://news.gmane.org/gmane.user-groups.linux.delhi http://www.mail-archive.com/[EMAIL PROTECTED]/
