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[FYI] Software Patents Tangle the Web



http://www.techreview.com/articles/ma00/shulman.htm

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March/April 2000 

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Software Patents Tangle the Web  

A profusion of new software patents on Internet business methods puts
our notions of intellectual property to the biggest test yet.  

By Seth Shulman  

Here’s a natural idea for an e-business: an “experts online” Web site.
With a team of specialists willing to answer queries over the Web and
a garden-variety search engine to pair these authorities with advice
seekers, you could have an Internet business up and running in no
time, fielding questions on everything from accounting to xerography.
To make the site really slick, you could let users select the
credentials they want in their experts and the fee they are willing to
pay.  

But before you tap your savings there is something you should know:
This business has been patented.  

[...]

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