D'OH! SOFTWARE IS PATENTABLE IN INDIA, AND NOBODY NOTICED: The latest patent ordinance in India has already raised strong protests from the people for allegedly favoring global pharmaceutical corporations. What has gone relatively unnoticed is the fact that computer programs (read software) can now be patented. The new ordinance has supposedly been brought in to make the Indian Patent Act TRIPS compliant.

Kapil Sibal, the minister for science and technology, is reported to have said that patenting of software is due to the demand of the Indian software industry whom it will help.

The Indian Patent Act, as modified in 2002 had made non-patentable the following:

• a mathematical method or a business method or a computer prgramme per se or algorithms.
  

The recent amendment states instead:

• a computer programme per se other than its technical application to industry or a combination with hardware; a mathematical method or a business method or algorithms.

Are anti-software loonies going bannanas over this development? Natch! Just check out this article on TheAge.com (see BugMeNot to bypass registration). The sky is falling!