RMS in Brussels - Software patents discussion at the Parliament

[Lionel Elie Mamane <lionel@xxxxxxxxx>]

Tuesday, 26 November 2002 at 02:00-06:30 PM in Bruxelles/Brussel

Conference "Is Software Patenting Necessary?"
European Parliament - Spinelli building
Room ASP 1 E 2

PROGRAMME

10:30 Press Conference

13:30 Registration (Entrance of the Altiero Spinelli building, rue Wiertz, B-1047, Brussels)

14:00 Introduction by MEP Danielle Auroi (Les Verts, France) and MEP Paul Lannoye (Ecolo, Belgium)
Keynote speech by Commissioner Frits Bolkestein to be confirmed

14:30 PANEL I : Software Law
Chaired by Piia Noora Kauppi MEP (EPP, Finland)

    * Heidi Hautala, MEP (Greens/EFA Group, EP) History of legal attempts
    * Sylvain Perchaux, Legal protection of software - patents versus copyright
* Hermann Shölch (patent examiner) Inflation of patents

15:15 PANEL II : Software Economy
Chaired by Michel Rocard MEP (PES, France, President of the Culture Committee)

    * François Pellegrini (Assistant Professor in Computer Science, University of Bordeaux): Economy of software patents - who wins, who loses
    * Pierre Haren (CEO of ILOG) : Impact of software patents on innovative software companies
* Brian Kahin (Director, Center for Information Policy, College of Information Studies, University of Maryland) : Software patents and innovation management in the information age

16:15 Pause

16:30 CASE STUDIES
Chaired by MEP Marco Cappato (PRT, Italy)

    * Jean-Pierre Berlan (INRA, France): Patents on livelihood
* Richard Stallman (Free Software Foundation): Impact on open data formats and on free software

17h30 ROUNDTABLE and Perspectives
with Arlene McCarthy, rapporteur to be confirmed
Chaired by MEP Paul Lannoye

with the speakers and Astrid Thors to be confirmed, Gilles Savary (PES) to be confirmed, Marco Cappato (PRT), Piia Noora Kauppi (EPP) Mercedes Echerer (Greens/EFA, Austria)

18h30 CONCLUSION by MEP Danielle Auroi

Interpretation in English and French
Information and registration:Laurence Van de Walle
lvandewalle@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx - Tel: +32 2 284 1695