THE previous post focused on today's talk which led us to the following petition [PDF], sent to us by several people almost simultaneously. We wish to bring it to the attention of EPO examiners and generally, as so many people are affected by the EPO, any EU citizen who is eager to take action to defend Europe's interests and the interests of science and technology, not conglomerates like Microsoft. Watch what kinds of patents Microsoft is getting and using aggressively, based on this latest rant from the EFF (just published). To quote the EFF:
For the first time ever, this month’s Stupid Patent of the Month is being awarded to a design patent. Microsoft recently sued Corel for, among other things, infringing its patent on a slider, D554,140, claiming that Corel Home Office has infringed Microsoft’s design.
[...] Microsoft’s patent claims against Corel are unsurprising in light of how much money is potentially at stake. If Corel is found to infringe even one of Microsoft’s design patents through even the smallest part of Corel Home Office, current Federal Circuit law entitles Microsoft to all of Corel’s profits for the entire product. Not the profits that can be attributed to the design. Not the value that the design adds to a product. All of the profit from Corel Home Office.