EU: "no" to software patents

Hurrah! A brief moment of rejoicing and here's why."'We buried a bad law and did so without flowers,' said Eva Lichtenberger, an Austrian member of the parliament's Green group. 'The legislation would have hindered the development of small companies and helped big businesses because they are the only ones that can afford patent lawyers and litigation costs.'
Not surprisingly, supporters of patents saw the defeat in a different light. Microsoft, Nokia, Siemens, and a number of other companies had been pushing hard for EU adoption, saying that it would encourage research and development while lowering costs for them. The trade-off comes when smaller companies and individuals find themselves embroiled in costly legal battles over what can be questionable patents. As proposed, the patent system in EU would have put small businesses and the open source community at a competitive disadvantage and ultimately would hinder--rather than encourage--innovation. "
European Union says "no" to software patents: