Low-quality software patents and certain copyright laws have...
Low-quality software patents and certain copyright laws have hurt competition and suppressed small-business growth, said the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) in comments filed Tuesday to the White House (http://bit.ly/1rndK6q) in connection with the administration’s efforts to update its Strategy for…
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
If your job depends on informed compliance, you need International Trade Today. Delivered every business day and available any time online, only International Trade Today helps you stay current on the increasingly complex international trade regulatory environment.
American Innovation (http://1.usa.gov/1quuBz3). A June Supreme Court decision heightened the criteria for software patents (CD June 20 p13), but legislation like the House-passed Innovation Act (HR-3309) is needed, EFF said. The digital privacy advocate also pointed to Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), “ostensibly intended to stop copyright infringers from defeating anti-piracy protections added to copyrighted works,” EFF said. “In practice, however, these provisions have been used to stifle a wide array of legitimate activities.” Several markets suffered as a result -- laser printer toner cartridges, videogame console accessories and mobile phones. The organization pressed the White House to support the Unlocking Technology Act (HR-1892), which hasn’t moved out of committee (http://1.usa.gov/1rnf6Ox).