Brussels, 20 May 2005. The FFII in conjunction with the European Patent Office (EPO) is pleased to announce it is co-hosting a new conference on EU software patent policy entitled "SMEs, software, copyright and patents" to be held on Tuesday May 24th. Exploring the experiences and expectations of SMEs with regard to patents on computer-implemented innovations, the event will consist of two panels of involved SMEs together with representatives of the EPO discussing this vital issue.
Jonas Maebe, Board Member of the FFII, said:
- By holding its first ever Information Day in the European Parliament earlier this year, the European Patent Office clearly demonstrated its willingness to openly present and discuss its policy goals and views. They are continuing this trend by organising, together with the FFII, an event where stakeholders will talk about how they make their business profitable, what they desire from the patent system and what experiences they have had.
The programme is as follows:
Panel 1: "Business models in the software industry: importance of various types of intellectual property rights" will discuss the various ways in which software companies can protect investment.
Chair: Ms Theodora Karamanli, European Patent Office
Speaker 1: Mr Joao Neves, Intraneia
Speaker 2: Mr Andrea Nikolai, T6
Speaker 3: Mr Daniel Doll-Steinberg, Tribeka
Panel 2: "Software, copyrights and patents: what impact do they have on stakeholders?" will look at copyrights and patents in particular and will focus on experiences that companies have had using these systems, as well as the interaction between the two regimes.
Chair: Mr David Hammerstein MEP (the Greens)
Speaker 1: Mr Pieter Hintjens, iMatix
Speaker 2: Mr Håkon Wium Lie, Opera Software
Speaker 3: Mr Jean-Paul Smets, Nexedi
Speaker 4: Mr David Sant, European Patent Office
In spite of the short notice, we hope to welcome you on May 24th!
Practical details
Date: 24th May 2005
Time: 14:30 -17:00
Location: Renaissance Hotel, Rue du Parnasse 19, 1050 Bruxelles
Contact information
Erik Josefsson
erjos at ffii.org
FFII Brussels Representative
+32-484-082063
David Sant
dsant at epo.org
Head of Bureau
European Patent Office
Brussels Bureau
+32-2-2741591
