Message 01014 [Homepage] [Navigation]
Thread: oxenT01014 Message: 1/1 L0 [In index]
[First in Thread] [Last in Thread] [Date Next] [Date Prev]
[Next in Thread] [Prev in Thread] [Next Thread] [Prev Thread]

[ox-en] (fwd)Re: [Patents] Patents: Experiments Exempt, Except at Universities



More on non-software patents...

FOS News - http://www.earlham.edu/~peters/fos/fosblog.html

More on patents to block free inquiry...In the March 10 issue of The
Scientist, Ed Ergenzinger and Murray Spruill  summarize the consequences of
last year's holding in Madey v. Duke University
(http://www.the-scientist.com/yr2003/mar/fine_030310.html) (Federal Circuit
Court of Appeals, October  2, 2002
[http://216.239.33.100/search?q=cache:fXg3rVyVSIsC:www.fedcir.gov/opinions/01-1567.doc+%22Madey+v.+Duke+University%22&hl=en&ie=UTF-8]).
You might know that "experimental use" is a defense against patent
infringement. That's true. You might think that  scientific experimentation
in universities is covered by this rule. It isn't. The experimental use
defense doesn't apply when  the experiment serves the business interests of
the alleged infringer. Since the business of universities is "educating and 
enlightening students and faculty" and securing "lucrative research grants",
and scientific experimentation serves these  goals, the experiments are not
covered and patent-holders may sue for damages. Madey was the first case to
apply this  doctrine to universities. 

In Madey, the alleged infringement was the unauthorized use of a patented
laser in a scientific lab. But to see how the Madey  doctrine can thwart
even basic research into nature, without regard to the technologies of
research, recall the application by  Andras Pellionisz to patent any attempt
"to count, measure and compare" the fractal properties of DNA introns
(http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/gate/archive/2002/11/21/jnkdna.DTL&type=printable)
(blogged to  FOS News on 11/26/02). (3/19/2003 5:30:05 PM)

Christina Dyrness profiles ibiblio, the University of North Carolina's
venerable free online archive, in the March 12 issue  of the Raleigh News &
Observer. Did you know that it was launched in 1992 as the SunSite
repository of public domain  source code? Did you know that Eric Raymond
managed the archive for a time? (Thanks to LIS News.) (3/19/2003 4:56:59 
PM)




_______________________
http://www.oekonux.org/



Thread: oxenT01014 Message: 1/1 L0 [In index]
Message 01014 [Homepage] [Navigation]