[Linux-aus] Patent Insurance and other stuff

[Craig Warner <craigw@blue.net.au>]

Sometimes in my very average day, at work I sometimes come across simple 
emails, one of those happened today, an email about requesting 
information about Patent Insurance.

For very dark cloud, there  always a silver lining,  where someone can 
make money!

Now for some serious business,  I have been reading with great interest 
the meeting between Open Source/Linux Australia and the representatives 
of the Chinese Government. Not at least the opportunity Pia had, the 
chance to talk about Open Source in Mandarin! 

As China is now Australia's largest trading partner, the involvement of  
DFAT and AUSTRADE is extremely important but I say this with a word of 
caution. Mainly as I question the push by DFAT in 'multilaterally' of 
discussions of a FTA with China when this comes to matters of 
intellectual property protection.

Now that brings me to a point to discuss the operations of a American 
lobby group called CompTIA ( http://www.comptia.org/default.aspx ), now 
after the signing of the AUSFTA CompTIA has setup shop in Sydney. This 
was reported in an article in the Australian on the 7th December titled 
"US body sets up here to rival ACS". 

CompTIA has been very active  in the lobby arena in regards to China:

http://www.softwarechoice.org/download_files/China_letter_7Dec_scan.pdf

and

http://www.softwarechoice.org/download_files/Chinese_Software_Rules_Comments.pdf

Once again like many American initiatives, they lack cultural, historic 
and diplomatic tactic. Perhaps this is a opportunity for Linux Australia 
to come to the front and show the  Howard Government how important an 
advantage open source is for Cultural, Trade and Diplomatic for 
Australian/China relationships.


Regards

Craig

PS I'm in Shanghai next month.

Useful Links:

Advisory Council on Intellectual Property

www.acip.gov.au

Unuseful links:

http://www.patents4innovation.org/index.php/eng/

http://www.softwarechoice.org/software_comp/cii_default.aspx

http://www.comptia.org/certification/linux/industry_support.aspx