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So it seems that the "abstract idea" under Bilski has turned into "does it look complicated enough." In Research Techs. Corp. v. Microsoft Corp., from last year, the court said that a method of halftoning was not abstract, because it involved a process of comparing pixels. In CyberSource, the court explained that comparing pixels was not abstract because "the method could not, as a practical matter, be performed entirely in a human mind." Similarly, in the Ultramercial case, the court says that the method is not abstract because "Many of these steps are likely to require intricate and complex computer programming," and "certain of these steps clearly require specific application to the Internet." These words, "as a practical matter," "intricate and complex computer programming," and "specific application to the Internet," are what throw me for a loop. As a practical matter, I can compare four numbers on a piece of paper, but I can't download a million numbers off of the Internet and compare them. So comparing four numbers on a piece of paper is an abstract idea, but comparing a million numbers on the Internet is not? |