IP: ONLINE PUBLISHING DILEMMA

[Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

ONLINE PUBLISHING DILEMMA
Researchers whose work is published online before it comes out in print are
trimming valuable weeks off the one-year limitation they have if they wish
to file a patent on their findings.  Some journals run abstracts or entire
articles online weeks or months before the paper version is available and
the practice isn't restricted to journals, either -- often papers will be
posted on a Web site prior to a conference where findings might be
announced.  The U.S. Patent and Trademark office hasn't issued a ruling on
electronic disclosure, but a spokesman says patent lawyers should assume
that anything that's available online should be considered "published,"
although it's "one of these issues that's going to take a while to mature."
In the interim, researchers who may wish to file a patent in the future
should always ask the publisher or conference organizer about early online
availability of their findings.  (Chronicle of Higher Education 17 Nov 95 A17)