Software patents under United States patent law information
Computer programs, software and patent law
Topics
Software patent
Debate
Free software
List of patents
Treaties
TRIPS Agreement
Patent Cooperation Treaty
European Patent Convention
Countries
Canada
United Kingdom
United States
Case law
European Patent Office
United Kingdom
Related topics
Business methods
v
t
e
United States patent law
Legislation
American Inventors Protection Act
Bayh–Dole Act
Invention Secrecy Act
Hatch-Waxman Act
Leahy–Smith America Invents Act
Title 35 of the United States Code
Types of patent claims
Article of manufacture
Composition of matter
Machine
Method
Procedures
Inter partes review
Markman hearing
Reexamination
Other topics
United States Patent and Trademark Office
Patent Trial and Appeal Board
Exhaustion
Infringement
Misuse
Term of patent
Manual of Patent Examining Procedure (MPEP)
History
Biological patents
Software patents
List of patent law cases
v
t
e
Neither software nor computer programs are explicitly mentioned in statutory United States patent law. Patent law has changed to address new technologies, and decisions of the United States Supreme Court and United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) beginning in the latter part of the 20th century have sought to clarify the boundary between patent-eligible and patent-ineligible subject matter for a number of new technologies including computers and software. The first computer software case in the Supreme Court was Gottschalk v. Benson in 1972. Since then, the Supreme Court has decided about a half dozen cases touching on the patent eligibility of software-related inventions.
The eligibility of software, as such, for patent protection has been only scantily addressed in the courts[1] or in legislation.[2] In fact, in the recent Supreme Court decision in Alice v. CLS Bank, the Court painstakingly avoided the issue, and one Justice in the oral argument repeatedly insisted that it was unnecessary to reach the issue.[3] The expression "software patent" itself has not been clearly defined. The United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has permitted patents to be issued on nothing more than a series of software computer instructions, but the latest Federal Circuit decision on the subject invalidated such a patent. The court held that software instructions as such were too intangible to fit within any of the statutory categories such as machines or articles of manufacture.[4]
On June 19, 2014 the United States Supreme Court ruled in Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank International that "merely requiring generic computer implementation fails to transform [an] abstract idea into a patent-eligible invention."[5][6][7]
The ruling continued:
[...] the mere recitation of a generic computer cannot transform a patent-ineligible abstract idea into a patent-eligible invention. Stating an abstract idea "while adding the words 'apply it'" is not enough for patent eligibility.[] Nor is limiting the use of an abstract idea "'to a particular technological environment.'"[]. Stating an abstract idea while adding the words "apply it with a computer" simply combines those two steps, with the same deficient result. Thus, if a patent's recitation of a computer amounts to a mere instruction to "implemen[t]" an abstract idea "on . . . a computer," [] that addition cannot impart patent eligibility.
^However, a recent nonprecedential decision of the Federal Circuit held that software as such is not patent eligible. Allvoice Developments US, LLC v. Microsoft Corp., 612 F. App'x 1009 (Fed. Cir. 2015).
^There has been legislation addressing business method patents, however, which are almost always based on software. The America Invents Act (AIA), for example, created new procedures for post-grant challenges to patents on "Covered Business Methods" (CBMs). See generally Intellectual Ventures II LLC v. JPMorgan Chase & Co., 781 F.3d 1372 (Fed. Cir. 2015).
^Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank Int'l, No. 13-298, 573 U.S. ___ (2014). During oral argument, Justice Sotomayor repeatedly asked counsel whether Alice was a software case: "Why do we need to reach . . . software patents at all in this case?"; "What's the necessity for us to announce a general rule with respect to software? There is no software being patented in this case."; "Do you think we have to reach the patentability of software to answer this case?" The Court's opinion in Alice does not discuss the patent eligibility of software as such.
^Allvoice Developments US, LLC v. Microsoft Corp., 612 F. App'x 1009 (Fed. Cir. 2015).The Supreme Court had held previously that software in algorithm form without machine implementation could not be patented in process format, see Gottschalk v. Benson and Parker v. Flook, but could be patented when claimed as a machine inventively using software, see Diamond v. Diehr.
^"Supreme Court Tosses 'Abstract' Software Patent - ABC News". ABC News. Archived from the original on June 22, 2014.
^"The Supreme Court has unanimously struck down a software patent that everyone agreed was terrible - The Washington Post". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on June 20, 2014.
^"Alice Corp. Patent Ruling is Good for Software Firms, Bad News for Trolls". Forbes.
and 29 Related for: Software patents under United States patent law information
Neither software nor computer programs are explicitly mentioned in statutory UnitedStatespatentlaw. Patentlaw has changed to address new technologies...
question of whether European patents granted by the European Patent Office (EPO) in these fields (sometimes called "softwarepatents") are regarded as valid...
cases. See Glossary of patentlaw terms for articles on various legal aspects of patents, including special types of patents and patent applications. Anton...
in defense of softwarepatents or defense of the patentability of computer-implemented inventions. Through public disclosure, patents encourage the open...
Neither computers nor software are specifically mentioned in the Canadian Patent Act. Canadian courts have held that the use of a computer in an invention...
granting of patents involving software (often referred to as "softwarepatents") is controversial and also hotly debated (see Softwarepatent debate). Although...
of patents and patentlaw is generally considered to have started with the Venetian Statute of 1474. There is some evidence that some form of patent rights...
of softwarepatents, which contains notable patents and patent applications involving computer programs (also known as a softwarepatent). Software patents...
of patents. Particular types of patents for inventions include biological patents, business method patents, chemical patents and softwarepatents. Although...
Patents & PatentLaw. May 23, 2017. Retrieved May 27, 2022. "Diversion of USPTO user fees is a tax on innovation". IPWatchdog.com | Patents & Patent Law...
regulations. For some states in Eastern Europe, the Eurasian Patent Convention applies. Patents having effect in most European states may be obtained either...
have been no dispute settlement procedures regarding softwarepatents. Its relevance for patentability in the domains of, for example, computer-implemented...
to grant patents is authorized only for the inventor. This was confirmed by case law: "Inventorship is indeed relevant to patentabilityunder 35 U.S.C...
In international law and business, patent trolling or patent hoarding is a categorical or pejorative term applied to a person or company that attempts...
believe that patents cause problems for free software. Leading open-source figures and companies have complained that softwarepatents are overly broad...
holders in pursuing patent claims than in the UnitedStates, due to significant differences between the two jurisdictions: Patents in Canada are subject...
amendments to the PatentLaw were designed to ensure China's compliance with its obligations under the TRIPS Agreement.: 20 Patents in China are granted...
This is a list of legal terms relating to patents and patentlaw. A patent is not a right to practice or use the invention claimed therein, but a territorial...
method patent claims are possible in the US, although the case law in the area is still evolving (see SoftwarepatentsunderUnitedStatespatentlaw). In...
unproductive for the software industry. Enforcement by patent trolls of poor quality patents has led to criticism of the patent office as well as the...
The European Patent Convention (EPC), also known as the Convention on the Grant of European Patents of 5 October 1973, is a multilateral treaty instituting...
notable patentlaw cases in the UnitedStates in chronological order. The cases have been decided notably by the UnitedStates Supreme Court, the United States...
to the complete patent as granted, which is meaning prevalent in Europe. Some of the early patents issued by the UnitedStatesPatent and Trademark Office...
Global Information