Assessing Technical Contributions in Computer-Related Inventions

In a recent case of Microsoft Technology Licensing, LLC v Assistant Controller of Patents and Designs, Microsoft filed a patent application in India in 2003, for an invention that enables secure user authentication when accessing network locations, thereby enhancing the network’s security and safeguarding it against potential breaches or unauthorized activities.

In mid2016, the Indian Patent Office (IPO) issued the First Examination Report (FER) which raised objections regarding novelty, inventive step in view of cited prior art references (D1-D5), non-patentability of the invention under Section 3(k) of the Indian Patents Act, 1970 (the Act) which relates to algorithm and the computer program per se, and the lack of clarity and conciseness regarding the scope of the claimed invention under Section 10(4)(c) of the Act.