The most recent injunction obtained by Apple against Samsung, as
reported recently in the Independent (London), brings attention and
focus to the system of patent protection. Is it worthwhile
obtaining patent protection? Is the South African patent law up to
date and capable of handling the the IT sector explosion?
In South Africa, the Patents Act will grant a monopoly in
respect of an invention which is "new". This means that
it must not have been known, worked, used or described (such as in
any trade journal, patent specification, or the Internet) anywhere
in the world. The tests of obtaining registration are very strictly
applied.
Patent applicants should be aware that they, too, might destroy
the validity of their own patents, by embarking on the use of their
invention prior to filing the application at the patents office.
This is how strict it can become.
