“Software Patent Law in Global Contexts: A Primer for Writing Specialists”

The work and personal lives of technical communicators are often conducted through the medium of software, and so the intellectual property (IP) laws that concern software’s composition and international distribution affect the way we write and live. Copyright is the IP regime most often discussed in the field of technical communication, but patent law has a potentially greater effect on composition in, of, and with software because the monopoly rights granted through patents can be more powerful than the distribution rights afforded by copyright. Patent protection for software has become more readily available through recent court decisions, international treaties, and changes to guidelines for patent examiners in the United States, European Union, and Japan. Software patents, when coupled with our accelerating reliance on both desktop and web-based software, are impacting our lives as writers and teachers. This article offers technical communicators a primer for software patents in Japan, the U.S. and the E.U., which drive IP law internationally.