Business Method Patent Protection Issues

As a result of 1998 State Street Bank decision,it is now widely recognized that software and methods of doing business may be patented in the United States.This has led to a dramatic increase in the number of applications filed since 1998 in the United States for business methods.The patent protection of business mathods has became a focus of the world, how to extend the present law to make the process of economy and technology is our urgent problem. In our country, there are some obstructionsion awarding patent to business methods. So, in order to grasp the legislation points of the business methods patent protection and design a set of business method patent protection system which fits the present situation of our country, we ought to reseach and review the practive pules of legislation and judicature of the main countries and the development level of business methods of our country.The aim of this disseration is to integrate the theories and practice in the protection of bussiness method invention patent in the USA,countries of European Commisssion and Japan and to research whether business method is the patentable subject and whether it fit for the seeential condition of patent,and to explore the corresponding answers.First, this paper generalize the present condition of business method patent protection in overseas, and elaborate the important purport the reseaches on business method patent protection.Secondly, on the basis of the compare and research on the legislation in the USA, Japan and Europe, and make conclusion that the patent protection to the business method is an inevitable tendercy. European rejected first and then reluctantly followed Japan keeps watch all the time and actively takes part in the patent application.After discussing several years,the trilateral have got a concerted cognition in subject matter of patent law. There have been no essential deference only practical problems now.Thirdly, the paper research whether business method is the patentable subject and whether it fit for the essential condition of patent about the novelty, practicabliity, non-obviously on the patent awarding in the business method, and the paper considers that the business method is not the mathematics algorithm but the patentable subject, and that the particularity of it is the combination of the computere software and hardware or with an online or computer system. So it is an enforceable technical scheme,then the ubsiness method is pententability.Finally, according to the situation of China, on the design of the concrete system, the paper considers that the business method is patentable subject under China law. In light of the on-going economic globalization in which China is taking an active role, China may eventually need to grant patent pyotection to business methods.The ultimate purpose of this paper is to offer some suggestion for China on law to establish patent protection system for the business method through reviewing the national and international circumstances that we are currently confronting with,analyzing the merit and demerit of the patent protecting way; for business method, discerning the lastest amendment of patent law as well as its guideline, the paper tries to research the feasibility of protecting the business method by patent. Moreover, it also proposals and countermeasures from many angles.As China joining the WTO,we undoubtedly face the international-zation of the game rules.The coming of information time accelerates the progress of science and technology,more ane more new things will appear,which meas our intellectual property law will for sure face grim test.Hence,another important purpose of this paper is to provide a method of thinking and a method of solving problems as well.