[Fsfe-ie] US Congress to Overhaul Patent Law
Alex Macfie
alex at cgce.net
Tue Aug 23 14:01:41 CEST 2005
On Aug 23, 2005, at 18:52, Éibhear wrote:
> claims on it's functions. Microsoft got there first. Under the current
> first-to-invent system, a court case would present that the iPod
> itself is
> "prior art" and therefore the patent is on shaky ground.
>
No, "first-to-invent" has *nothing* to do with prior art, which has to
be *published*.
The iPod would only be prior art against Microsoft's if the technical
details were *published* *before* Microsoft's claimed invention date.
But if it's prior art, then no-one can patent it.
Alex
--
Alex Macfie, Taipei, Taiwan R.O.C.
alex at cgce.net
http://www.cgce.net/
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