[DotGNU]Patent: coordinating the delivery of a gift

[Eric Altendorf]

Off topic, but this is the sort of crap that gets me motivated, so I 
thought I'd throw it out here and try to rile up some folks. :-)

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First Amazon patents the concept of a "one-click purchase".  Now they
want to patent the concept of "coordinating the delivery of a gift".
 http://www.nypost.com/technology/64022.htm

(Yet another reason why I refuse to shop at Amazon...)

Someone please tell me how issuing 20-year government enforced
monopolies on concepts, ideas, or algorithms is good for competition
or in any way whatsoever encourages technological progress in a free
market.

For more information on the disturbing trend in patenting ideas read
James Gleick's excellent editorial in the New York Times:
http://www.nytimes.com/library/magazine/home/20000312mag-patents.html


Eric