November 2005
Gamasutra - Feature - "Nintendo Entertainment System – Expired Patents Do Not Mean Expired Protection"
by bcpbcp"[Editor's Note: This article originated when the Gamasutra editors noticed a number of online sources such as Wikipedia stating that it was now completely legal to make NES 'clone' consoles, because all of Nintendo's patents regarding the NES had expired. How true was this statement? We asked game IP lawyer S. Gregory Boyd the question: "Are the NES patents expired? If so, is a company free to build and sell new NES-like systems?" Here's his response.]"
March 2005
Council Presidency Adopts Software Patent Agreement Against Council's Rules
by mbertier"7 March 2005 -- The Council Presidency today declared the software agreement of 18 May 2004 to have been adopted, in violation of the procedural rules and in spite of the evident lack of a qualified majority of member states and the requests of several states to reopen negotiations."
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