As mentioned in a previous post, Amazon's one-click patent case goes before the Federal Court of Appeal today, June 21st, in Toronto.
If you're not familiar with one-click, that's the button you clicked to order Steven Tyler’s new “memoir” in a mad rush of last minute shopping for Father’s Day. Amazon has a patent on the system in the U.S. and they have been trying to get it acknowledged here in Canada for the last 13 years. The case could end up at the Supreme Court, and it might usher in a new era for Canadian patent law.
As the new Harper government gets back to work on Canada’s long-awaited Digital Economy Strategy they would be wise to consider whether business method patents foster innovation, or whether they act as quiet quests for control over information and cultural practices.
In honour of the trial, and in an attempt to raise a bit of awareness about the Amazon case and business method patents more generally, I spoke with podcaster/agitator/critical tech journalist Jesse Brown, host of TVO's excellent and always insightful, Search Engine Podcast
You can check out the episode here or download the mp3 file directly here.
I want to thank Jesse for taking an interest in the subject and for putting the episode together. I should also thank Dr. Michael Geist, my supervisor on this project, who has been an great sounding board for a legal-neophyte like me. Finally, I have to thank the FQRSC, who made this project possible in the first place.
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