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Bill: Software Patents
Details
Submitted by[?]: Freedom Party
Status[?]: defeated
Votes: This is an ordinary bill. It requires more yes votes than no votes. This bill will not pass any sooner than the deadline.
Voting deadline: April 2097
Description[?]:
| We consider that copyright is sufficient on software as an algorithm is of such a nature that it can be described as having been discovered and not invented. Discoveries of logical or mathematical procedures are not of the right nature for patents to apply. At what point does sufficient similarity occur between to sorting algorithms for example, for them to be considered the same. This is unanswerable. As such, although we would like to protect the intellectual effort of the discoverers of an algorithm we consider this to be unenforcable and as such not a viable law. Therefore we wish to change it so that they cannot be patented. |
Proposals
Article 1
Proposal[?] to change The patenting of software techniques.
Old value:: Software patents can be obtained from the patent office.
Current: Software patents can be obtained from the patent office.
Proposed: Software designs, techniques, formulae and algorithms cannot be patented.
Debate
These messages have been posted to debate on this bill:
| Date | 16:24:51, August 15, 2005 CET | From | Liberal Imperialist Party | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | Against. This effectively destroys the entire computer software industry. |
| Date | 17:09:07, August 15, 2005 CET | From |  RSDP - Democratic Front | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | In favour. |
| Date | 17:15:48, August 15, 2005 CET | From | Liberal Imperialist Party | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | RSDP how can you be in favour of peoples' jobs being destroyed? |
| Date | 17:52:27, August 15, 2005 CET | From | RSDP - Democratic Front | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | I don't think this will destroy jobs, on the contrary, it will create jobs as large companies in the software business will have to become more creative. |
| Date | 18:22:25, August 15, 2005 CET | From | Liberal Imperialist Party | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | No they wont, they'll just go straight out of business because their software will be immeidately pirated and sold openly for extremely little money. This repugnant piece of legislation will destroy a major part of the Rutanian economy and remove any ability of Rutanians to develop software. |
| Date | 19:50:30, August 15, 2005 CET | From | Grand Republican Party | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | Against. |
| Date | 21:59:23, August 15, 2005 CET | From | RSDP - Democratic Front | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | Then people will still rather buy the products of the established companies, it only gives smaller companies a fair chance of competing. |
| Date | 00:48:50, August 16, 2005 CET | From | Liberal Imperialist Party | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | Arent established companies established for a reason? And no this wont give smaller companies a "fair chance" of competing, it will destroy ALL competition because it will completely and utterly destroy the entire industry. Rutania will no longer make computer software - just buy it from other nations. This bill makes no economic sense, and will only result in hard working Rutanians being made redundant. And I thought you were a communist. Protect the workers! |
| Date | 00:48:59, August 16, 2005 CET | From | Liberal Imperialist Party | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | *socialist |
| Date | 20:11:07, August 16, 2005 CET | From | Freedom Party | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | Just to make you aware, that this does not stop copyrighting software as that is allowed but patenting software algorithms that means companies have to pay to use them or cant do it. |
| Date | 21:18:16, August 16, 2005 CET | From | Liberal Imperialist Party | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | Without having any ownership of software "designs, techniques, formulae and algorithms" what, precisely, does the company which developed the software actually own other than the name...? |
| Date | 21:37:21, August 16, 2005 CET | From | Freedom Party | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | They own the code, the way it all comes together and what it does. If someone copies all or most of the code, then they are in breach of copyright |
| Date | 22:16:12, August 16, 2005 CET | From | Liberal Imperialist Party | To | Debating the Software Patents |
| Message | Im not sure if I actually understand this issue :S. Does it have any RL equivalent? |
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Voting
| Vote | Seats | ||||
| yes |
Total Seats: 250 | ||||
| no |
Total Seats: 339 | ||||
| abstain | Total Seats: 10 |
| Random fact: "Doxxing", or the publishing of personally identifiable information about another player without permission, is forbidden. |
| Random quote: "People say I steal. Well, all politicians steal." - Huey Long |