News20041020FFIIProtectInnovation
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This month the Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure (FFII-UK) has launched its new "Protect Innovation" campaign http://www.protectinnovation.org/ to raise awareness of the danger that software patents pose to the UK software sector.
Rufus Pollock, spokesperson for FFII-UK, said 'We often hear that patents are important for encouraging and protecting innovation. However, in this area patents serve the very opposite purpose: they threaten innovation, particularly in SMEs - who are essential to the most dynamic areas of the industry'
The campaign's aim is to promote awareness in government, businesses and among the public of the danger software patents pose to innovation. As a first step FFII-UK is gathering testimony and comments from business across the UK which will be included in a submission to the DTI later this year.
[Editor's note: Software patents are a threat to innovation for all software, both free and proprietary. AFFS supports FFII-UK's work to protect all software developers from this common danger.]
-- Brian J Gough, 20/10/2023