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Software Patent Policy

Data Virtue strives to honor the intellectual property of others.  However this doesn't include software patents deemed by the general community (software developers as a whole) as illegal. 

For instance, if Data Virtue develops technology that happens to "infringe" on a software patent no actions will be taken to remedy the situation.  Software, for the most part, is mathematical algorithms which the courts have ruled off-limits to patents. 

For some reason the last twenty years has seen a frenzy of ridiculous patents filed (and granted) by individuals and companies.  How? The same way Microsoft escaped adverse rulings in its anti-trust case.  The people in the justice system have no knowledge of software or technology development which makes it easy for someone with resources to confuse the issue enough in court. 

Although I make no attempt to purposefully infringe patents some of them are so ridiculous and obvious as to make criminals of everyday programmers.  This is the purpose of filing patents on software. 

 

In recent years IBM has been filing for patents because Microsoft (over 4000) and others had been on a mission to obtain as many patents as possible.  IBM has tried to protect the community of developers by securing patents and not enforcing them.  However, this doesn't prevent abuse in the future should IBM lose its technology edge like Microsoft has.

Some companies only hold patents (they produce no technology) and so generate revenue by bullying and suing other companies & individuals who have produced technology.  This is immoral and an abuse of the patent/justice system.

 

Why wasn't UNIX patented 30 YEARS ago?  Because you could not secure one!  For some reason though, in recent years, the system has yielded to billionaires, I wonder why?

Please visit http://www.eff.org/patent/