Innovation Claims of FOSS

Transcription

1 Innovation Claims of FOSS For Software Innovation and Against Non-inventive Software Patents Siu-wai Leung School of Informatics University of Edinburgh. 1/24

2 Outline Talk+Q&A then discussion Innovation incentives Patent threat Innovation claims Technical challenges. 2/24

3 FOSS and FOSIS Free and Open Source Sharing, re-use, integration Freely accessible knowledge Threats Proprietary software Software patents Innovation Free, Open Source, and Innovative. 3/24

4 Software in Patents a a Source: Bessen and Hunt, /24

5 Why Random Sampling? No official statistics Hard to search No software classification Many application categories. 5/24

6 Patents & Tech. Markets Innovation & business games Valuation of companies Leadership in technology Stock prices Venture capitalists. 6/24

7 Procuring Knowledge Procure new knowledge Innovation remains secrets or get lost Incentives as the prices Do we need incentives? Are we paying too high a price?. 7/24

8 Innovative Enough? Appropriate competition Efficient communication Fostered improvements Little duplication of creative efforts Re-use, combination, integration Appropriate rewards, incentives. 8/24

9 Symptoms Complaints of impediments (inefficiency) Too few similar products (monopoly) Too many similar products (over-competition) Complaints of inadequate incentives. 9/24

10 FOSS is Innovative? Yes, FOSS outperforms No, too many clones Yes or No?. 10/24

11 Patent Incentive Society to procure new knowledge Non-altruistic innovators Give temporarily exclusive rights Get new knowledge Otherwise remains secrets or get lost Drive people away for different innovations Theories: prospects and rent dissipation. 11/24

12 Alternative: Prize CA s US$ 1 million prize Top prize US$300,000 Software to help customers Move from rivals to Ingres. 12/24

13 Alternative Incentives Awards Research grants / donation Publications as achievements Idealistic beliefs Secondary incentives e.g., possible income from technical services. 13/24

14 Patentability Statutory subject matter Novel Non-obvious Useful Well-specified. 14/24

15 What s Non-statutory? Nature Laws of nature (scientific discoveries) Mathemtaics & logics (the way people think) Survival Food per se Diagnostic methods of diseases Therapeutical methods Immoral / unethical. 15/24

16 Novel & Non-obvious Prior art: relevant and existing knowledge / publications. 16/24

17 Well-specified Patent Specification Title Background Summary Brief description Detailed description Claim(s) Abstract (< 150 words) Listings Ordinarily skilled people (artisans).. 17/24

18 Software Patents Software is basically abstract, not tangible 1970s: mechanical devices and processes that happened to include computer programs 1998: software can turn any generic computer into specific machinery New methods and know-how can be written in software Inadequate classification for software patents. 18/24

19 Some Restrictions Restriction by the utility Directed to a utilitarian object English language, not programming language Must no pre-empt the field (cannot be the only method) Cannot cover unknown uses of the algorithms. 19/24

20 Software Patent Claims A method embedded in a set of computer-translatable instructions comprising: < algorithm/procedure > so that < input > is < transform > in conjunction with a computer into < output > < algorithm/procedure > in order to < transform > < input > into < output >.. 20/24

21 Non-inventive Royalty fees >> R&D costs Patent term is too long Claim scopes are too broad The society is paying too high a price. 21/24

22 Innovation Claims Same format as patent claims Claim free territories for FOSS FOSS FOSIS Search report to support innovative claims Incentives for FOSS innovations Software integration Specification and documentation Deter software patents Facilitate prior art search. 22/24

23 Technical Challenges Restricted languages for specification & query Reasoning of claims Repositories (databases) Ontology development Synthesis of new project ideas Artificial artisans Experimental economics. 23/24

24 Remarks Software should not be patentable The price (20 years) is too high Abandon software patents FOSS innovation and claims Technical solutions Your suggestions. 24/24