To patent or not to patent: forthcoming seminar

From Isaac Rutenberg, a US-based patent attorney now living in Kenya, comes more news of a fascinating forthcoming event:

To Patent, or Not To Patent: Protecting Computer Software A seminar and training workshop in Kenya
 The Centre for Intellectual Property and Information Technology Law (CIPIT) at Strathmore Law School (in Nairobi, Kenya) is hosting a training seminar on 14-15 August, 2012, to discuss intellectual property, and particularly patents, as applied to computer software. The seminar is co-hosted by iBizAfrica, the business incubator at Strathmore University.
 Participating organizations include the United States Patent and Trademark Office, the World Intellectual Property Institute, Vision 2030, the Kenya Industrial Property Institute (KIPI).
 Background
As the Kenyan ICT industry grows, protection of intellectual property (IP) is becoming increasingly important. Protection of IP rights for computer software can be challenging, particularly in the area of patents. An understanding of the applicability, benefits, and drawbacks of patents, copyrights, trademarks, and other forms of IP is critical to the ICT sector.
 Computer software is not specifically excluded from patent protection in Kenya under the Industrial Property Act of 2001, and the Kenyan patent office (KIPI) has several options for dealing with software patent applications. This seminar will provide an opportunity for attendees to learn about the positive and negative aspects of computer software patents, and will provide attendees an opportunity to voice their support or opposition to such patents. Experts from the USPTO, WIPO, academia, and local businesses will be presenting in a roundtable discussion to cover the issues.
 Day two of the seminar will provide practical guidance and will focus on effectively using IP in the ICT sector. The training workshop will explore protection via patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, and domain names. Other topics will include IP in licensing and fundraising activities.
 Target Audience
This training seminar will benefit anyone with an interest in obtaining IP rights for computer software. Lawyers will benefit by an enhanced ability to advise clients in the ICT sector. Large ICT companies will benefit by having an opportunity to voice their opinions about the treatment of computer software by KIPI. Entrepreneurs and start-up companies will benefit by learning the most appropriate and effective ways to treat IP within the ICT industry.
 The Kenya ICT Board is a major sponsor of the seminar. Sponsors also include Google.
 For more information, see http://www.strathmore.edu/sls/cipit/index.html or send email to cipit@strathmore.edu