Research On Patent Protection Of Computer Software In China

After the Second World War, the application of computers transferred from military fields to civilian areas, and computers have played an important role in all walks of life. In the wake of the global economy integration and information globalization, the computer software is of capital importance and the demandof legal protection for them becomes urgent.In the1960s, the protection mode of computer software began to be discussed. Due to the limited knowledge of computer software, the international opinion of the protection mode varies in the different stages of social development. Over evolution of half a century, the U.S. suggested patent protection for computer software first. Then, the copyright protection was accepted internationally. Further, some countries consented to patent protection. Finally, the protection mode of talcing copyright protection in principle and patent protection and trade secrets as supplement was established. In China, the legal protection of computer software starts late. There is no specific law of patent protection for computer software, but it is undeniable that in China the limitation of patent protection for computer software has been gradually relaxed in judicial practice and patent review. A few computer software of qualification own patent protection.In this dissertation, the patent protection for computer software is studied. There are three chapters. In Chapter One, the concept of computer software, technical features and intellectual property features of software and the developingprocedures of software are discussed. The necessity of patent protection for computer software is highlighted. In Chapter Two, the status of protection for computer software is exhibited. The copyright protection and trade secret mode are analyzed, and inadequacies of them are found. Moreover, the development process of patent protection mode for computer software as U.S. and the development of Chinese are introduced. In Chapter Three, the patentability of computer software is investigated. The legislative proposals are given for the improvement of Chinese law. It is believed that with these proposals the computer software will be fully protected to promote the progress of Chinese software manufacture.