La brevetabilité des logiciels : les étapes clés de l'évolution jurisprudentielle aux États-Unis

Abstract

This article deals with the issue of the software patentability and the case law evolution in the United States in this area. From the beginning of the 80's, many key decisions have allowed software to be patented, whereas it has been traditionally protected by copyright. Through the new protection of mathematical algortihms, and the patentability of « business methods » in the field of finance or e-commerce, software protection has been strengthened. Patent protection for software is also possible in Europe but in a different way : whereas the American system lies on « utility » criterion, the European approach lies on « technical effect » criterion. At the end of this article, we underline several economic issues links to this tendency and particularly : the economic effect of software patentability on the innovative path of firms ; the analysis of the institutional mechanisms of patent offices and the examination failure ; the deposal strategies of firms and their licensing purpose.