European anti-software patents leader quits

As campaign manager of the NoSoftwarePatents.com organization, Mueller stirred up opposition to software patents and to Microsoft Corp., the leading proponent of software patents.

Mueller said he is folding www.NoSoftwarePatents.com, although its work will be carried on by another anti-software patent organization, the Foundation for a Free Information Infrastructure (FFII). Hartmut Pilch is the president of the FFII, based in Munich, Germany.

The issue — whether software should be patented — has been working its way through the thicket of European Union agencies and legislative bodies and is likely to continue on that circuitous course for several months.

Generally, large companies with hefty patent portfolios like Microsoft support software patents. Most developers of open-source software usually oppose patents for software, maintaining that copyright and trade secret protection are adequate safeguards.