However, the technology’s inventor fears his creation will become less useful after Microsoft was given the rights to its design. Software patents raise a lot of hackles because they seem like abstractions. The patent office is supposed to require that a patent be “novel, useful and non-obvious”. But what can be novel about software?
Patents have a long history of hurdles
Patents are an odd thing to get worked up about. They are one of the few types of government-enforced monopolies that people are ok with. It is generally accepted that patents provide an incentive for innovation and that the occasional case of patent aggression is worth tolerating. According to Microsoft, The problem is that there’s no standard terminology for software patents. A patent doesn’t necessarily reflect the developer experience of “inventing” something new, but instead usually reflects the idea of implementing an existing concept in a new way. In other words, if you’re doing something new, your project could fall under another company’s patent without you even knowing about it. Also, given Microsoft’s history with patents, What are your thoughts about patents in software? Let us know in the comment section below.
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