For Immediate Release - Distribute Widely

Software Developpers Rally Around EU Parliament

see als the newer press release The Gloves Coming Off for Round Two in the EU Fight over Software Patents

The Brussels demo is accompanied by two days of conferences in the European Parliament. The FFII hopes that it will spark off a series of similar events in national capitals during the period before the elections of the European Parliament from June 10 to June 13. Moreover, during this period netizens are called to block access to their websites and instead point to protest pages. Similar actions in August and September 2003, termed "the 2003 Patent Riots" by US PC Magazine commentator John Dvorak, had attracted 500 participants from all over Europe in Brussels and struck a chord of resonance with scientists and software companies. A combination of elaborate argumentation with a groundswell of public opinion ultimately persuaded a majority of Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) from all political groups to vote for clear limitations on patentability.

Anonymous Patent Officials Dictating Scope of Patent System

However the EU Parliament alone can not pass laws. It needs the support of the Commission and the Council of Ministers. In the latter, effective power is in the hands of ministerial bureaucrats from national government who are often affiliated with special interest communities. In the case of the software patent directive, the members of the Council's "Working Party on Intellectual Property (Patents)" consists of exactly those patent experts who, in another institutional setting, run the European Patent Office. On September 23rd 2003, the day before the European Parliament's vote, EU Commissioner Frits Bolkestein threatened the Parliament that it would lose its influence on European patent legislation if it went against the will of the Council. The Council, Bolkestein warned, would simply scrap the directive and pursue its own policy outside the EU, in the inter-governmental framework of the European Patent Organisation (EPO), far removed from all parliamentary control.

After the Parliament defied Bolkestein's threats, Bolkestein's directorate soon circulated a secret document among member governments in which it discredits the Parliament's vote on the basis of formalistic arguments and false assertions. This encouraged the national patent experts in the EU Council's "Working Party on Intellectual Property (Patents)" to press ahead with a secret proposal for unlimited patentability, of which a yet undivulged follow-up document was produced on 2004-03-17. A final version could be decided by the ministers (EU Competitivity Council) in May and then presented to a new European Parliament for a second reading under more restrictive rules in autumn after, after the June elections. The Parliament can then only vote against the Council with an absolute majority of all members (not only the present ones), knowing that this vote will lead to the withdrawal of the directive and the decision of matters by the governmental patent officials of the Council among themselves, in the framework of the EPO.

The Council Working Party is careful to conceal which government advocated what. Upon inquiry, most governments say that they are being pushed toward unlimited patentability by the other governments.

Conferences in Brussels and Berkeley

FFII formulated its concerns in a Call for Action which has received support from numerous members of the European Parliament, associations, companies and individuals, many of whom are expected to voice their concerns at the press conference in Brussels on April 14th.

The two-day events overlap with a conference at Berkeley University in California, USA, about new reports by the Federal Trade Commission and the National Academy of Sciences which point out that software patents are stifling innovation and call for patent reform.

Schedule

The program in Brussels is approximately as follows

Wednesday, 2004-04-14

10:00-11:00

Press Conference inside the European Parliament, Petra Kelly Room, ASP 01G2 [1]. Please register at press040414@ffii.org.

11:30-14:00

Speeches and Performances on Luxemburg Square beside the Parliament, Walk to the Council building, Launch of Balloons.

14:00-18:00

Conference on Software Patents in EP Petra Kelly Room - ASP 01G2 [1], please register via the participation system or ask conf040414@ffii.org for help.

Thursday, 2004-04-15

09-18:00

Free Software and Digital Rights conference organised by Greens/EFA in EP, Petra Kelly room - ASP 01G2 [1]

[1] The Petra Kelly room in the Antonio Spinelli(ASP) Building in Brussels of the European Parliament has the ASP coordinates 01G2 which means floor 1, Area G and Room Number 2. For entrace to the Antonio Spinelli Building(take the back side entrance) to either need to be an accredited journalist to the European Parliament, Registation to the conference(registration period now over), or the invitation of an MEP.

Contacts

Mail

media@ffii org

Phone

Hartmut Pilch +49-89-18979927 (German/English/French)

Benjamin Henrion +32-498-292771 (French/English)

Jonas Maebe +32-485-36-96-45 (Dutch/English/French)

Dieter Van Uytvanck +32-499-16-70-10 (Dutch/English/French)

About the FFII

www.ffii.org

The Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure (FFII) is a non-profit association registered in Munich, which is dedicated to the spread of data processing literacy. FFII supports the development of public information goods based on copyright, free competition, open standards. More than 250 members, 300 companies and 15,000 supporters have entrusted the FFII to act as their voice in public policy questions in the area of exclusivity rights (intellectual property) in the field of software.

Permanent URL of this Press Release

http://plone.ffii.org/events/2004/bxl04/pr/

Links

EU Council criticises lack of democracy in Russian presidential elections

Council members point out that there was no real discussion of policy options before the elections and alternative candidates had no real chances.

Strangely enough, however, processes in Russia may seem more democratic than in EU, precisely because of the role of the Council. The russian parliament still has the power to make laws. They don't have a Commission/Council deciding in an anonymous backroom procedure to scrap parliamentary votes, after stating that only the interests of a claimed "economic majority" deserve protection and systematically refusing to discuss policy options.

Participation System

after logging on to this system you can announce your participation, reserve hotel beds in Brussels etc. As a supporter you can fine-tune your participation by ticking boxes in mailings which ask more details.

Demo14and15april AEL working wiki

This is the working wiki where many volunteers are helping for the logistic problems of the event.