Australians pitch in to fight e-commerce levy

By PETER GRIFFIN IT writer

New Zealand e-tailers caught up in the DE Technologies patent row may soon get a lot more than moral support from across the Tasman, where the IT industry has mobilised to stop the patent being granted there.

Montreal-based DE Technologies has been granted patents in New Zealand, the US and Singapore covering a series of business processes used in conducting international e-commerce transactions.

Two weeks ago it moved to enforce its patent in New Zealand, sending letters to local "infringing" e-tailers demanding licensing fees be paid to avoid their being shut down.

The resulting alarm in the IT industry has spread to Australia, where DE Technologies' patent application is working its way through the patent issuing process.

But Senator John Tierney, deputy chairman of the Senate standing committee on communications, IT and the arts, said he would pursue changes to the Patents Act if necessary to fend off DE Technologies' pursuit of a patent.

"We're quite prepared to look at policy on this and the prospect of legislative action. These people are leeching the system."

Tierney said the process of making legislative change was time-consuming, but he believed members of the Senate would support him.

He said the implications of the patent being passed would not only be devastating for e-commerce operators, but for a Government increasingly implementing e-government, part of which will increasingly involve commercial transactions on a global scale.

"This could affect the Government as well. We've got a world's best practice [online] procurement programme in place."

Australian industry opposition has been led by New Zealander Matthew Tuataki, the business development manager at Sydney-based software company Syntropys.

Tuataki said he had received about 3000 emails and phone calls of support over the last week over his opposition to the DE Technologies patent, which has culminated in him applying for an extension to the three-month period during which objections can be made. That request is being considered by IP Australia, the country's intellectual property office and patent issuer.

Tuataki said Australia was in a fortunate position to try to stop the patent before it was granted. If successful, such a move would add to the case of New Zealand opponents trying to overturn the patent.

"We come from the same base in law. If it comes to it, the test in court will be very short and very sweet."

Tuataki is calling for a review of the patent offices in both countries, whereby the commercial impact of a patent's granting needs to be assessed before the application is rubber stamped - in the same way as housing developers must carry out environmental impact studies before beginning construction.

Fight the patent

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