Leading European Technology Firms Warn Over Amendments to Software Patent Law

by Ulrika Lomas, for LawAndTax-News.com, Brussels

15 December 2003

Five of Europe's leading technology firms have written to the European Union's Internal Market Commissioner, Frits Bolkestein, urging the European Commission to scrap amendments to its planned Directive on the Patentability of Computer Implemented Inventions, which they argue will make it hard for them to recoup their research and development (R&D) costs.

In response to concerns expressed by programmers and entrepreneurs within the EU, the European Parliament earlier this year approved around 90 amendments to the initiative, the majority of which were designed to ensure that software and business methods cannot themselves be patented.

However, in a letter sent last month but seen by Reuters on Thursday, the heads of Nokia, Ericsson, Siemens, Philips and Alcatel explained that:

"The vote in parliament...has completely turned the commission's original proposal around, removing effective patent protection for much - and in the case of telecommunications and consumer electronics probably most - of our R&D investment."

The telecom firm bosses concluded:

"This would have devastating consequences for our companies. It would be open for all-comers to exploit the results of our expensive R&D programmes at no cost."

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