EU SOFTWARE PATENTS - BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD: The battle to prevent software patents being introduced in Europe received a major boost on Wednesday afternoon when the Legal Affairs Committee (JURI) of the European Parliament (EP) demanded that the Computer Implemented Inventions Directive (CIID) be rewritten.

A EP spokesman confirmed on Thursday that the president will be asked by the European Commission (EC) to take the patent directive back to the drawing board.

Piia-Noora Kauppi, a Finnish MEP who was present at the JURI meeting, said this decision had considerable support from the members of the Legal Affairs Committee.

The EP spokesman said the EC is not obliged to agree to the EP's request for a restart, but is likely to adhere to the will of the parliament. But an EC spokesman said that the Commission has not yet decided anything and will "keep its options open" and "see what happens with the EU Council".