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ARTICLE · 29 JULY 2016

Software patent wars: A new hope

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This APO decision upheld the patent eligibility of an invention relating to software functionality in a gaming machine.

AustraliaIntellectual Property
Matthew Ward (Formerly With Shelston IP)
Matthew Ward (Formerly With Shelston IP)
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Australian Patent Office decision approves gaming machine user interface

It has been a rough few years for software patents in Australia. Since 2010, the Patent Office appears to have been on a crusade to limit the extent of what can be patented in the computer-implemented space. Finally, after what seemed like an age of consistent rejections, the pattern has broken. On 22 July 2016, the Australian Patent Office issued a decision which upheld the patent eligibility of an invention relating to software functionality in a gaming machine. The decision is available here.

The technology in question is, in essence, related to a touch-screen GUI which allows a player to select a game and a bet denomination for use in the game. The main claim is as follows:

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