Say 'No' to software patents
August, 2008, InfoChange-India
The issue of patents for software was discussed and rejected last year by the Indian government but has come back this year for approval. This article by a FOSS proponent is of the opinion that the the clubbing together of different protections like copyrights, patents and trademarks is misleading. While rights are supposed to protect and serve the people, they only serve to protect the interests of the holder at the cost of people who need it the most. While patents are granted to inventions and guarantees the inventor some protection, software are not tangible items, they are ideas. If ideas begin to be patented, it would lead to a situation where it would be virtually impossible to create any new software without violating patents. Software patents only serve the interests of large corporations and effects the development of software by small companies.