Patent Office Issues Guidance on Software Patents

Following the recent judgment in the Court of Appeal that the UK Intellectual Property Office (UKIPO) was wrong to reject six patent applications purely on the grounds that they were for software, UKIPO has accepted the ruling and indicated that it will not be appealed. UKIPO has therefore issued a revised guidance note regarding the obtaining of patent protection for software.

 

It is important to note that UKIPO has clearly stated that the decision ‘does not have the effect of making computer programs generally patentable in the UK but it does allow innovators to enforce all aspects of their patentable inventions directly’.

 

At present, the courts are taking a more liberal approach than the UKIPO as regards the allowability of patents incorporating software and have overturned the UKIPO in further recent cases. The UKIPO's response to the decision can be seen here.