Patently o alice mail

You're referring to the famous "I'm Patently O" email sent by Alice Corporation to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) in 2007!

For those who may not know, Alice Corporation is a software company that developed a system for electronic cash transfers. The company filed a patent application for its invention, which was later granted as U.S. Patent No. 5,970,479.

However, the USPTO later re-examined the patent and issued a decision finding that the claims were invalid under 35 U.S.C. § 101, which deals with patentable subject matter. The USPTO concluded that the claims were directed to an abstract idea and did not provide a "markedly different" or "significantly improved" way of doing something.

Alice Corporation appealed the decision to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC), which ultimately ruled in favor of the USPTO. The CAFC held that the claims were indeed directed to an abstract idea and did not meet the requirements of patentable subject matter.

The case, Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank Int'l, was then appealed to the Supreme Court, which issued a landmark decision in 2014. The Supreme Court held that the claims were indeed abstract ideas and did not meet the requirements of patentable subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101.

The Supreme Court's decision in Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank Int'l has had significant implications for patent law, particularly in the area of software patents. It has led to a renewed focus on the patentability of software-related inventions and has raised questions about the scope of patentable subject matter.

And that's the story behind the "I'm Patently O" email!