E-commerce Business Method Patent Protection

The rapid development of internet and E-commerce in the world challenges patent system,and patent object inclines to enlarging tendency. The business method is exclusive of patent protection because it is traditionally thought to belong to the rule and way of intellectual activities. However, the judgement of State Street Bank case in 1998 in USA Federal Court confirmed business method patent in practice.Base on simply setting forth the definition and development of E-commerce, the paper introduces the definitions of business method and business method patent, economical background of business method patent protection.Otherwise, the judgement of State Street Bank case in 1998 break the principle of Exception of Business Method, but academe and frame of theory doesn't also give up the discussing about the patentability of business method. The paper stressly study the patentability of business method. First ,it enumerates the principal provision about patentability; secondly, it differentiates the conceptions which is easily confused, clarifies some wrong realization, for example , whether business method belongs to abstract idea , law of nature or not;business model is different of business method . Thirdly, it analyses the current protecting situation in America,Europe and Japan. As the precusor of protecting business method, America's law doesn't have the definit regulation of business method. In America patent developing history, whether the business method is belong to patent subject or not, the attitude of American Patent Office(UPO) and the Federal Court changes from "say no" to "say yes", through more than 130 years. At present, because of the loose examination standard of America, there has been a calamity about business method patent. Under American strong force, European Patent Office(EPO) rigorously abides technique standard. On the one hand, a patent requisition includes technique character, it belongs to...