Computer and information technology remain important and rapid growth industries in this modern world. It was decades ago that many companies seek to protect their business methods utilizing computer program or software by patent. However it has spurred worldwide discussion as whether software inventions which use mathematical algorithm are patentable.
Taiwan Intellectual Property Office (TIPO) first launched the examination guidelines for computer software related inventions in October 1998. With the accessibility of internet, software innovations involve tremendous changes with more diversified products and services. TIPO then amended said guidelines and announced a revised version of the same in May 2008 to meet the new demand of software inventions.
The new guidelines provide the definition of statutory subject matter of computer software related invention by emphasizing the substantive disclosure rather than formality expression so that the claimed invention shall possess technical characters over the prior art as a whole; further, the claims may either be method or article covering a device, system, computer readable medium, computer program product, data structure product or the like. The English translation of said examination guidelines is available now, please contact us if you need a free copy of said translation.
