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The big hot topic is New Zealand Patents Bill 235. May 2013: new text might block software patents.


Patents Bill 2009 as of 2021

New Zealand no longer recognises computer software as patentable with the acceptance of Supplementary Order Paper 237, on 9 May 2013. There is a software industry petition website (now archived) documenting the advocacy and process (and intrigue - namely unethical behaviour by multinational corporations and their lawyers which, in turn, brought the NZ government minister into disrepute by association) involved. The website and those involved were thanked on the floor of NZ Parliament by the main MP advocate for the software patent ban, Claire Curran.

Patents Bill 2009 (as of 2012, still ongoing)

See also: New Zealand Patents Bill 235

Unifying examination with Australia 2012

In 2012, the government published a the Building Innovation[1] report. The only relevant mention of patents was one general statement:

Passing the Patents Bill will align our patent laws more closely with those of our trading partners and international best practice.

"aligning with trading partners" could be a euphemism for taking orders from the USA, or it could be innocuous.

Patent office decisions

The Intellectual Property Office of New Zealand (IPONZ) is responsible for examining patent applications.

In 2005, they approved an application for using a computer with an XML word-processor document, displayed with an XML Schema Definition, using software with the functionality of "parsing, modifying, reading, and creating the word-processor document".[2] [3]

To search for patents on the NZIPO website, go to their search page:

Then fill in one or more fields and go back to the top of the page and click "Submit query".

Legislative process

A "SOP" is a Supplementary Order Paper, which is an amendment.

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External links

Government institutions

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References


Economic Regions
Africa Harare Protocol participants Botswana · Eswatini · Gambia · Ghana · Kenya · Lesotho · Liberia · Malawi · Mozambique · Namibia · Rwanda · São Tomé and Príncipe · Seychelles · Sierra Leone · Sudan · Tanzania · Uganda · Zambia · Zimbabwe
Bangui Agreement participants Benin · Burkina Faso · Cameroon · Central African Republic · Chad · Comoros · Congo · Ivory Coast · Equatorial Guinea · Gabon · Guinea · Guinea-Bissau · Mali · Mauritania · Niger · Senegal · Togo
Algeria · Angola · Burundi · Cape Verde · Democratic Republic of the Congo · Djibouti · Egypt · Eritrea · Ethiopia · Libya · Magadascar · Mauritius · Nigeria · Somalia · South Africa · South Sudan*
North America Antigua and Barbuda · The Bahamas · Barbados · Canada · Dominica · Dominican Republic · Haiti · Grenada · Guatemala · Jamaica · Saint Kitts and Nevis · Saint Lucia · Saint Vincent and the Grenadines · Trinidad and Tobago · United States
Central & South America Andean Community members Bolivia · Colombia · Ecuador · Peru
Argentina · Belize · Brazil · Chile · Costa Rica · Cuba · El Salvador · Guatemala · Guyana · Honduras · Jamaica · Mexico · Nicaragua · Panama · Paraguay · Uruguay · Venezuela · Suriname
Asia Eurasian Patent Convention participants Armenia · Azerbaijan · Belarus · Kazakhstan · Kyrgyzstan · Tajikistan · Turkmenistan · Russia
Afghanistan · Bangladesh · Bhutan · Brunei · China · Georgia · India · Indonesia · Japan · Laos · Malaysia · Maldives · Mongolia · Myanmar · Nepal · Pakistan · Philippines · Singapore · North Korea · South Korea · Sri Lanka · Taiwan · Thailand · East Timor · Uzbekistan · Vietnam
Europe
European Patent Convention participants
Unified Patent Court parties
and Unitary Patent participants
Austria · Belgium · Bosnia and Herzegovina · Bulgaria · Cyprus · Czech Republic · Denmark · Estonia · Finland · France · Germany · Greece · Hungary · Iceland · Italy · Ireland · Latvia · Lithuania · Luxembourg · Malta · Montenegro · Netherlands · Portugal · Romania · Slovakia · Slovenia · Sweden
Unitary Patent participants Poland
Unitary patent for Switzerland and Liechtenstein Liechtenstein · Switzerland
Albania · Cambodia · Croatia · Kosovo · North Macedonia · Moldova · Monaco · Morocco · Norway · San Marino · Serbia · Spain · Tunisia · United Kingdom · Turkey
Andorra · Ukraine · Vatican City
Middle East Gulf Cooperation Council members Bahrain · Kuwait · Oman · Qatar · Saudi Arabia · United Arab Emirates
Iran · Iraq · Israel · Jordan · Lebanon · Palestine · Syria · Yemen
Oceania Australia · Cook Islands · Micronesia* · Fiji · Kiribati · Marshall Islands · Nauru · New Zealand · Niue · Palau* · Papua New Guinea · Samoa · Solomon Islands · Tonga · Tuvalu · Vanuatu
All countries are members of the World Intellectual Property Organization except those marked with an asterisk (*).