I'm Martin Goetz. In 1968 I received a patent for sorting data on a large scale computer.
It was the first software patent that the patent office ever issued.
Back in the 1960s, IBM and other hardware companies were all giving away their software
when they sold their computer. During that time we were trying to sell our software but
trying to sell against free software is very difficult. And that was the reason I tried
to get a patent on a new method of sorting data on a computer, because IBM had a sorting
system that they were giving away free, and I did not want them to copy that method and
also distribute it free so I applied for a patent. Fortunately, I did get a patent.
I and several others who were selling programs against free software decided that we thought
it was unlawful. We went to the Justice Department. At that time the Justice Department was bringing
suit against IBM. And I and other companies, my company Applied Data Research, helped push
IBM to unbundle their software. So that was sort of the start of the software industry.
It was also the start of people, of companies applying for patents for their software inventions.
NORMA GOETZ: Are we going to be out here long? Um…
MARTIN: Get an umbrella.
NORMA: I'll get an umbrella.
MARTIN: We met at the Catskill Mountains at a resort. They used to have singles weekends and, uh…
NORMA: I was newly divorced with two kids.
MARTIN: …and, uh, eight months later we got married.
And how long have we been married now?
NORMA: 38 years.
MARTIN: 38 years. NORMA: Nice years. Good years.
But I was in my early forties, a bachelor for many, many years.
Yeah, and inherited not only two girls, but we ended up with six animals. But a lot of
the animals have died. There's only one now. So, we've had a very interesting life together.
Right.
When I got my first software patent, it became very controversial. Over the years companies
started applying for patents that should never have been issued. Amazon got their 1-Click
patent, and that was obviously not an invention. If you look at the iPad, whether you can stretch out
your fingers to enlarge a picture, whether something like that should be patentable or is
just sort of obvious is questionable. But the patent wars go on, and some of the large
companies are fighting each other. Uh, it is a little bit of a mess I would have to say.
Hopefully it will get straightened out over time.