Date: Thu, 21 Oct 1999 19:01:07 +0200
From: sf@fermigier.com
To: lwn@lwn.net
Subject: Eurolinux Alliance delegation meet European Union legislators


         Eurolinux Alliance delegation meets European Union legislators
                                       
   A delegation of european industry leaders headed by J-P Smets and
   sponsored by the [1]Eurolinux Alliance corporate members has met on
   october 15th representatives of the European Commission (DG XV) to
   share views about a possible modification of the article 52.2 of the
   Munchen Convention that would allow software patents in Europe.
   
   [2]Complete (and unofficial) minutes of the meeting are available on
   the Eurolinux Web site.
   
   Unfortunatly, the DG XV doesn't seem to get the concept that computer
   programs are more like books than like hardware inventions, as they
   may never have come into contact with real computer programs, but only
   with shrink-wrapped software packages sold in computer shops, where,
   for marketing purposes, software is dressed up like hardware. They
   also have expressed the opinion that ``it is very unlikely that the EU
   can do anything that will be imitated by the US, because in general
   the EU lags a few years behind the US.''
   
   Eurolinux' opinion that software patents are bad for competition and
   inovation in the IT industry is shared by many, like Jamal Labed
   (president of BSA (Business Software Alliance) France), Roland Dyrof
   (SuSE), Paolo Didone (Prosa Linux), Ralf Schoebel (Intradat), Tatu
   Ylönen (SSH), Ismael Ghalimi (ExOffice), Frank Hoen (NetPresenter),
   Jean Ferré (ARISEM), Haavard Nord (Troll Tech), Tim Berners-Lee (W3C),
   Richard Stallman (FSF), Bruce Alberts (President of the US National
   Academy of Sciences), Linus Torvalds (Linux), Michael Widenius
   (MySQL), Infomatec, Linbox, ISOC France, AFUL, FFII, Linux-Verband,
   and by more than 10000 individuals who signed FFII's [3]open letter to
   the EU Competition Commissioner.
   
   More info:
   
     * [4]The Eurolinux Alliance, whose goal is to promote a free
       information infrastructure in order to garantee optimal economic
       conditions for free competition, innovation and technology
       diffusion in the IT industry.
     * [5]The FreePatents.org website, dedicated to the protection of
       innovation, competition and open source software against the use
       and abuse of software patents.
     * [6]AFUL, the french-speaking Linux and free software users
       association.
     * [7]FFII, the Association for the Promotion of a Free Informational
       Infrastructure.
     * [8]IICBS (Italy).

References

   1. http://www.eurolinux.org/
   2. http://www.eurolinux.org/news/euipCAen.html
   3. http://swpat.ffii.org/miert/indexen.html
   4. http://www.eurolinux.org/
   5. http://www.freepatents.org/
   6. http://www.aful.org/
   7. http://www.ffii.org/indexen.html
   8. http://no-patents.prosa.it/
-- 
Stéfane Fermigier, Tel: 06 63 04 12 77 (mobile).
Linbox Inc., AFUL, Linux-Center.
 -  - .