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(External links: * [http://www.no-patents-on-seeds.org/en/information/news/german-parliament-prohibits-patents-plants-and-animals-conventional-breeding German Parliament prohibits patents on plants and animals from conventional breeding], 27 June 2013)
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{{Infobox|country-region-todo}}
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:''May 2013: see [[German parliament petition against software patents]]''
==Legislation==
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'''Germany''' is part of the [[European Union]], is a signatory of the [[European Patent Convention]], and has significant [[case law in Germany|case law]] regarding [[software patents]].
  
==Patent office practice==
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==Case law==
To be added.
 
  
===Articles===
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:''(See: [[Case law in Germany]])''
* http://www.esr-pollmeier.de/swpat/intro.html
 
  
===See also===
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Germany has a mixed history of rejecting and, more recently, upholding software patents.  Germany is a signatory of the [[European Patent Convention]], so this case law will be influential in most of Europe.  In 2010, the Germany High Court (BGH) upheld a patent on an [[XML patents|XML]] document formatting system (case [[Xa ZB 20/08 (2010, April, Germany)|Xa ZB 20/08]]) and one of [[Microsoft's FAT patents]] (case [[X ZR 27/07 (2010, April, Germany)|X ZR 27/07]]).
* [[Who decides if software patents exist]]
 
  
==Case law==
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==Legislation==
===Digital Circuits===
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* Full name: [http://www.ip-agents.de/Lawyer/Rulings/Patent-Rights/inter/BGH-Softwarepatente/BGH-Softwarepatente_digitale-Schaltungen.html X ZB 11/98 – Digital Circuits], 13th December 1999
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[[Patentable subject matter]] is defined by the below quoted part of this law: {{translate de|url=http://www.transpatent.com/gesetze/patg.html#1|title=Bekanntmachung der Neufassung des Patentgesetzes, Vom 16. Dezember 1980}}
  
This important ruling introduced the test of "''controllable natural forces''".
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<blockquote>
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(3) Als Erfindungen im Sinne des Absatzes 1 werden insbesondere nicht angesehen:<br />
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:1. Entdeckungen sowie wissenschaftliche Theorien und mathematische Methoden;<br />
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:2. ästhetische Formschöpfungen;<br />
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:3. Pläne, Regeln und Verfahren für gedankliche Tätigkeiten, für Spiele oder für geschäftliche Tätigkeiten sowie Programme für Datenverarbeitungsanlagen;<br />
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:4. die Wiedergabe von Informationen.<br />
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(4) Absatz 3 steht der Patentfähigkeit nur insoweit entgegen, als für die genannten Gegenstände oder Tätigkeiten als solche Schutz begehrt wird.
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</blockquote>
  
This [[legal wording]] was used in the EU by the anti-swpat campaign in September 2003.
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Possibly of interest is {{translate de|url=http://volltextservice.luchterhand.de/display.php?volltextid=4K481004|title=German court ruling "7 O 145/09"}} which discusses Sec. 15 para 3 and Sec. 140a para 3 of the German Patent Act, with info related to covenants not to sue.
  
===External links===
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==Related pages on {{SITENAME}}==
  
* [http://eupat.ffii.org/papers/bgh-dispo76/ FFII page about a 1976 BGH decision], which also has a handful of other good links near the top
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* [[Case law in Germany]]
* [https://www.ffii.de/wiki/FallVistaPrint FFII wiki about the Vistaprint case (in German)]
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** [[Controllable forces of nature]] - a test, based on German rulings
* [https://www.ffii.de/wiki/Urteile FFII wiki listing software patent cases, most in German courts (in German)]
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* [[German patent courts and appeals]]
  
 
==External links==
 
==External links==
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* http://www.dpma.de - Germany's patent office
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* {{translate de|url=http://www.patentfrei.de/|title=PatentFrei (anti-swpat group, still active in 2010)}}
 
* [http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=240205 Software Patents in Germany], Stefan Bechtold, July 2000
 
* [http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=240205 Software Patents in Germany], Stefan Bechtold, July 2000
* http://www.ipwiki.de/patentrecht:softwarepatente
 
 
* [http://www.bmbf.de/pub/innovationsverhalten_sw-entwicklungsunternehmen.pdf German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)]
 
* [http://www.bmbf.de/pub/innovationsverhalten_sw-entwicklungsunternehmen.pdf German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)]
* de.Wikipedia: [http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Softwarepatent#Deutschland Softwarepatent#Deutschland]
 
 
* [http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/03/07/patent_crackdown_at_cebit/ 180 German police perform raid regarding software patents]
 
* [http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/03/07/patent_crackdown_at_cebit/ 180 German police perform raid regarding software patents]
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* [http://eupat.ffii.org/gasnu/de/index.en.html FFII's page on swpats in Germany]
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* http://www.esr-pollmeier.de/swpat/intro.html
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* http://www.patentfrei.de/
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* [http://www.internationallawoffice.com/Newsletters/detail.aspx?g=abc44bef-50b0-4b0b-8c70-a28d7fa5502a Industry Standards and the Competition Law Defence Acting Like a 'True Licensee'] - about the [[competition law defence]]
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* [http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=240205 Software Patents in Germany - Current Developments], by Stefan Bechtold, July 2000
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* [http://www.eplawpatentblog.com/eplaw/2010/10/de-covenant-not-to-sue.html Covenant not to sue <nowiki>[in German law]</nowiki>], 6 Oct 2010, '''EPLAW patent blog'''
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** Which discusses {{translate de|url=http://volltextservice.luchterhand.de/display.php?volltextid=4K481004|title=German court ruling "7 O 145/09" on the difference between a "covenant not to sue" and a "licence"}}
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* [http://www.bundeskartellamt.de/wEnglisch/News/press/2011_04_20.php Bundeskartellamt clears CPTN joint venture for acquisition of Novell patents], 20 Apr 2011, '''Federal Cartel Office'''
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* {{translate de|url=http://www.ipwiki.de/patentrecht:softwarepatente|title=ipwiki.de/patentrecht:softwarepatente}}
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* {{translate de|url=http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Softwarepatent#Deutschland|title=de.wikipedia: Softwarepatent#Deutschland}}
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* {{translate de|url=http://www.swpat.info/|title=www.swpat.info}}
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* {{translate de|url=http://blog.prevalent.de/?p=32|title=T-Mobile SPAM Patent ruled invalid}} - but it took five years!
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* [http://www.no-patents-on-seeds.org/en/information/news/german-parliament-prohibits-patents-plants-and-animals-conventional-breeding German Parliament prohibits patents on plants and animals from conventional breeding], 27 June 2013, '''no-patents-on-seeds.org'''
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===[[FFII]] pages===
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* [http://eupat.ffii.org/papers/bgh-dispo76/ FFII page about a 1976 BGH decision], which also has a handful of other good links near the top
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* {{translate de|url=http://eupat.ffii.org/papers/bpatg17-suche02/index.de.html|title=FFII page about the 2002 ruling with "forces of nature"}}
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* {{translate de|url=http://www.ffii.de/wiki/FallVistaPrint|title=FFII wiki about the Vistaprint case}}
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* {{translate de|url=http://www.ffii.de/wiki/Urteile|title=FFII wiki listing software patent cases, most in German courts}}
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{{footer}}
 
[[Category:Germany]]
 
[[Category:Germany]]
 
[[Category:Countries and regions]]
 
[[Category:Countries and regions]]
[[Category:Patent office practice by region]]
 
[[Category:Case law by region]]
 
 
[[Category:EPC signatories with relevant subject matter case law|Germany, Case law in]]
 
[[Category:EPC signatories with relevant subject matter case law|Germany, Case law in]]
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[[Category:European Union member states]]
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[[Category:European Patent Convention signatories]]

Revision as of 17:45, 1 September 2013

May 2013: see German parliament petition against software patents

Germany is part of the European Union, is a signatory of the European Patent Convention, and has significant case law regarding software patents.

Case law

(See: Case law in Germany)

Germany has a mixed history of rejecting and, more recently, upholding software patents. Germany is a signatory of the European Patent Convention, so this case law will be influential in most of Europe. In 2010, the Germany High Court (BGH) upheld a patent on an XML document formatting system (case Xa ZB 20/08) and one of Microsoft's FAT patents (case X ZR 27/07).

Legislation

Patentable subject matter is defined by the below quoted part of this law: German original: Bekanntmachung der Neufassung des Patentgesetzes, Vom 16. Dezember 1980 (English translations[?]: Google, bing translator)

(3) Als Erfindungen im Sinne des Absatzes 1 werden insbesondere nicht angesehen:

1. Entdeckungen sowie wissenschaftliche Theorien und mathematische Methoden;
2. ästhetische Formschöpfungen;
3. Pläne, Regeln und Verfahren für gedankliche Tätigkeiten, für Spiele oder für geschäftliche Tätigkeiten sowie Programme für Datenverarbeitungsanlagen;
4. die Wiedergabe von Informationen.

(4) Absatz 3 steht der Patentfähigkeit nur insoweit entgegen, als für die genannten Gegenstände oder Tätigkeiten als solche Schutz begehrt wird.

Possibly of interest is German original: German court ruling "7 O 145/09" (English translations[?]: Google, bing translator) which discusses Sec. 15 para 3 and Sec. 140a para 3 of the German Patent Act, with info related to covenants not to sue.

Related pages on ESP Wiki

External links

FFII pages