EU Lawmakers Reject Software Patent Proposal

The European Parliament overwhelmingly rejected a proposed law Wednesday to create a single way of patenting software across the European Union, calling instead for comprehensive rules for granting patents to inventions in all fields.

The vote, 648 to 14 with 18 abstentions, was a defeat for big companies, which had pushed hard for adoption of the bill. Businesses and advocates of free software had engaged in massive lobbying campaigns.

The bill would have given companies EU-wide patent protection for such computer-related inventions as programs for complex CAT scanners and ABS car-brake systems. The protection would have extended to computer programs when the software was used in the context of realizing inventions.

But lawmakers said the measure would stifle enterprise and did not promote innovation. The move kills the legislation because the EU head office, which had drafted it, does not plan to set forth a new version.

“Patents will continue to be handled by national patent offices

Companies such as Nokia Corp. and Siemens had said the software bill would give them incentives to invest in research and development.

Open-source advocates, however, said individuals and small businesses could be bankrupted by costly battles with software giants over fuzzy patent law.