Patent Action
In 2005 the NZOSS formally objected to a New Zealand Patent 525484, a patent for "Word-processing document stored in a single XML file that may be manipulated by applications that understand XML". The opposition was based on evidence cited by the United States Patent and Trademark Office who rejected the patent in the United States. The NZOSS withdrew their opposition in August 2006 as a consequence of Microsoft significantly amending the patent such that Abiword would no longer constitute prior use or prior publication.
In 2009 the NZOSS made a submission to the Commerce Select Committee considering the Patent Bill before Parliament. The submission proposed that software be excluded from being patentable. The Commerce Select Committee agreed with the submission, excluding software from patents. Minister Simon Power has publicly stated that he supports the decision of the Commerce Select Committee.
Read more about this topic: New Zealand Open Source Society
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