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Difference between revisions of "Why focus only on software"

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(Patents affect each domain differently, so opposition to software patents doesn't imply a desire to abolish other types of patents. The main reasons for focussing exclus)
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Whether patents are good or bad in a particular domain depends on different criteria. Some domains, such as writing software, writing books, composing music, performing math etc. are domains where ordinary members of society participate, individually or in groupsThese are activities that can be completely fulfilled by non-profit activity.  To participate in a field which carries patent risks, you need money and lawyers. In the domains mentioned above, adding patents equates to taking away people's freedom to participate in these activities.
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Patents [[Why software is different|affect each domain differently]], so opposition to software patents doesn't imply a desire to abolish other types of patentsThe main reasons for focussing exclusively on software are:
  
==How patents on different domains affect society==
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* A broader scope is more work
One thing to keep in mind is that plenty of things are excluded from patentability.  Being excluded doesn't mean that software is special.
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* A broader scope leads to having more opponents
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* Maybe patents are good for some other domains
  
For the manufacturing of cars, you have to consider how patents will affect:
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==Social effects as well as economic ones==
# the cost of mass production
 
# the impact on quality/safety of what's offered to citizens
 
# the impact on the economy overall
 
  
Campaigners against software patents are usually not general experts on those topics, so we might not know if innovations in car manufacturing should be patentable or not.
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Whether patents are good or bad in a particular domain depends on different criteria.  Some domains, such as writing software, writing books, composing music, performing math etc. are domains where ordinary members of society participate, individually or in groups([[Analogies]]) To participate in a field which carries patent risks, you need money and lawyers. In the domains mentioned above, adding patents equates to excluding many important contributors to these domains.
 
 
For software, there are similar questions to the three above, plus there is the fourth question of individual liberty and the effectiveness of communities.
 
 
 
This question isn't pertinent to car manufacturing because individuals and communities usually don't manufacture cars.
 
 
 
If someone patents a method for making a car, that doesn't reduce people's liberty. Making cars requires a lot of cash and materials, and there are already many laws that places regulations and restrictions on making carsSo people already excluded. Adding a patent problem doesn't change anything.
 
 
 
For one thing, software is mass produced by individuals and groups who don't get paid directly for that work (or do it for non-commercial reasons). Adding the cost of the patent system is unfair to these people.
 
 
 
Communities write great software (a community wrote most of GNU/Linux).  People should continue to have their right to participate in the development and distribution of software, and to continue to benefit from the work of the vast community that develops the software that people use.  Patents would create problems for individuals' liberty, and for the general software development which society as a whole benefits.
 
  
 
Pointing out general failings and costs of the patent system can be useful because it lets me make the argument: "patents are massively inefficient, therefore they should only be applied where we're absolutely sure that they're worthwhile".  Some people think [[the whole patent system should be abolished]], but this is a minority opinion among anti-swpat campaigns.
 
Pointing out general failings and costs of the patent system can be useful because it lets me make the argument: "patents are massively inefficient, therefore they should only be applied where we're absolutely sure that they're worthwhile".  Some people think [[the whole patent system should be abolished]], but this is a minority opinion among anti-swpat campaigns.
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==Choosing our opposition==
 
==Choosing our opposition==
  
On the other hand, by criticising a wider category of patents, we increase the number of opponents we have to debate.  By fighting software patents, we have to fight Microsoft, IBM, and other large companies.  If we fight all patents, then we also have to fight the whole pharmaceutical industry and the car manufacturing industry.  So we make it harder to achieve our goal.
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On the other hand, by criticising a wider category of patents, we increase the number of opponents we have to debate.  By fighting software patents, we have to fight [[Microsoft]], [[IBM]], and other large companies.  If we fight all patents, then we also have to fight the whole pharmaceutical industry and the car manufacturing industry.  So we make it harder to achieve our goal.
  
 
That said, there's no reason for anti-swpat campaigners to endorse patents in other fields.  We don't have to say that patents are ok elsewhere but not for software.  We can simply say that we don't have an opinion on other fields, but for software we have a strong opinion that there should be no software patents.
 
That said, there's no reason for anti-swpat campaigners to endorse patents in other fields.  We don't have to say that patents are ok elsewhere but not for software.  We can simply say that we don't have an opinion on other fields, but for software we have a strong opinion that there should be no software patents.
  
==See also==
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==Related pages on {{SITENAME}}==
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* [[Why software is different]]
 
* [[Should the whole patent system be axed]]?
 
* [[Should the whole patent system be axed]]?
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* [[Organising a campaign]]
  
 
==External links==
 
==External links==
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* [http://www.ifso.ie/documents/rms-2004-05-24.html#software Stallman speech excerpt on why software development is different to mechanical fields]
 
* [http://www.ifso.ie/documents/rms-2004-05-24.html#software Stallman speech excerpt on why software development is different to mechanical fields]
  
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{{footer}}
 
[[Category:Campaigning]]
 
[[Category:Campaigning]]

Revision as of 12:33, 29 April 2013

Patents affect each domain differently, so opposition to software patents doesn't imply a desire to abolish other types of patents. The main reasons for focussing exclusively on software are:

  • A broader scope is more work
  • A broader scope leads to having more opponents
  • Maybe patents are good for some other domains

Social effects as well as economic ones

Whether patents are good or bad in a particular domain depends on different criteria. Some domains, such as writing software, writing books, composing music, performing math etc. are domains where ordinary members of society participate, individually or in groups. (Analogies) To participate in a field which carries patent risks, you need money and lawyers. In the domains mentioned above, adding patents equates to excluding many important contributors to these domains.

Pointing out general failings and costs of the patent system can be useful because it lets me make the argument: "patents are massively inefficient, therefore they should only be applied where we're absolutely sure that they're worthwhile". Some people think the whole patent system should be abolished, but this is a minority opinion among anti-swpat campaigns.

Choosing our opposition

On the other hand, by criticising a wider category of patents, we increase the number of opponents we have to debate. By fighting software patents, we have to fight Microsoft, IBM, and other large companies. If we fight all patents, then we also have to fight the whole pharmaceutical industry and the car manufacturing industry. So we make it harder to achieve our goal.

That said, there's no reason for anti-swpat campaigners to endorse patents in other fields. We don't have to say that patents are ok elsewhere but not for software. We can simply say that we don't have an opinion on other fields, but for software we have a strong opinion that there should be no software patents.

Related pages on ESP Wiki

External links