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Conclusions

The patentability of software is well-settled in the U.S. Much software (more than most think) is patentable in Europe, under the European Patent Convention. In the E.U., the political dust may not yet have settled on the issue of software patents.

Consequently, where permitted under national law, and where the U.S. market is a significant part of the world market, globally-minded clients should consider filing software patent applications in the U.S. first.

This is the best value for the client who wishes to incrementally invest in his intellectual property, assessing its value from time to time and adjusting his patent filing strategy accordingly, in order to minimize required investment per patent, and maximize potential returns.