[ Return to Petition Signing Page ] Name Location Company / Institution Comments David Gelinas Cornell University James Henderson Dallas Mountain View Thomas Latimer Rosie Williams Australia Curtin University Charles Berube Gary Holden Mark O'Keeffe High Wycombe BCUC Katherine Richert UC Berkeley Simonetto Thomas Belgium L'enseignement devrait rester gratuit pour toute les personnes désireuse d'apprendre. C'est attitude est inabmissible Victor Ramon Dallas UT Ole Hartvigsen Denmark William Ward UK It must be seen as the biggest publicised suicide in the industry! Jodie Minneapolis, MN Denbigh Starkey Bozeman, MT Montana State University M Abdulkareem Saudi Arabia KSU ajpGonzales1428@xtra-mail.com Jorge Gonzales Dan Poage Cobb Information Systems, Inc. Luciano Giacò Rome University of Rome "Tor Vergata" Mário Zenha-Rela Coimbra University of Coimbra Barbara Jean Walsh Delray Beach, FL cheryl welsch Marcos Daniel Marado Torres Portugal Cynthia Alvarado Dave Wood Coventry, UK University of Warwick Crazy Sean Penderel Urbana, IL University of Illinois There are going to be a lot of lawsuits over this, because any system with a distance learning environment is going to have problems with Blackboard & infringement. Stefan Hansson Sweden David Bailey Toronto, Canada University of Toronto I was first taken aback by Blackboard when they reacted in amazement when we asked where was the option for making course webpages public for anyone. Their response was: Why would you want to do that? This patent is very consistent with that attitude. Hasan Yuksel Turkey AkademiNET Language School Jens Gammelgaard Denmark OPTIMON This is a huge step in the wrong direction for BB, but I am looking forward helping Danish ex-BB users over to Moodle. Sherry Brown California, USA Blackboard should be ashamed of its intellectual dishonesty. J Gagen London Imperial College Carolyn strauss New York The New School Ruben Nijveld Will Sutter Denmark Danish-Online Vinny Stocker UK http://www.reviseguys.com Support open source. It's the future. Phillip Radcliffe Sapporo, Japan Sapporo University Viva la Moodle! Mark Matsune Sapporo, Japan Derek Kennewell Angela Kennewell Glenn McKinney Peter Redovich Forrest Mcfeeters Shawn Vincent Kitchener, Ontario Irritating, incompetent patent office should never have let this one through. Patents are for protecting your own *original inventions* - not trying to strangle an industry: especially an industry that does as much public good as educational software. Gwendalynn Lim Toronto Jam Sarmiento Willem Wieme Gent, Belgium Ghent University Henrique M D Santos Portugal Universidade do Minho HQ Miguel Calejo Porto Declarativa Rizha Banyuwangi Indonesia Greedy! Tamak! Loba! Maruk! Jenny Le Peuple London Metropolitan University Marco Caresia Bolzano, Italy Shawn Dunn Harold Jarche Canada This patent application is based upon significant prior art, much of which came from the public sector. Albert K. Petersheim Kevin Steadman San Diego, CA Life Force International Mathieu B. St-Pierre David Stewart Seattle, WA First Glance Imaging Sam Walker Gordon Pettey TX Peter Vogl Texas MidWestern State philip wilkins London Metropolitan University Dr. Hazel Dawe London, UK London Metropolitan University Education should be a common good. Anything which makes it difficult or impossible for creative creation of learning techniques is detrimental to the teaching profession. Frank Tauchert Halle, Germany John Berger Tennessee It's *education* for goodness sake! If Blackboard were really meaning to just help people with *learning*, they'd do all they can to get others in on it too, instead of trying to get greedy with a BS thing like a patent on internet teaching! Ivan Bethencourt Springfield, IL LLCC Colin Scroggins Albuquerque, NM Rainer Schmitz BRD Yona Appletree Eugene, OR Gerardo Lisboa Portugal IST Matthew Hill Barry Levine El Paso, TX Yet another absurd patent awarded by bureaucrats who don't know their asses from holes in the ground. Sadagopan Srinivasan Duncan Smith Toronto, Canada University of Toronto Ryan Prins Aaron Egaas Seattle This is an attack on the entire patent system. It'd be like KFC patenting chicken. Warner Herring NY NYU Boo on Blackboard. Martin Erpicum Belgium University of Liège Rom Feria University of the Philippines Kristian Schultz Odense, Denmark Syddansk Universitet Alois Klotz 5400 Hallein, Austria HS Hallein-Burgfried Martin Herweg Germany HBBK Marl Adrian Keech Dubai Rashid School For Boys Aaron Smith Dr. Dimane Mpoeleng BOTSWANA University of Botswana Narayana Pappu Ithaca Cornell University Oleg Chernetsov Russia AlfaInsurance I also support those companies that are rightfully fighting this attack on the education industry. Peter Goodhall Oxford, UK hamtests.co.uk RAVIRAJA PENMETCHA TALLAHASSEE, FL PENAMAR, INC. Florian Techel Sharjah, United Arab Emirates University of Sharjah Carlos Poemape Provo, Utah Blackboard has no right to claim a patent for what already exists. Carlos Vaz de Carvalho Porto Instituto Superior de Engenharia do Porto Robert Pardo Chile Uvirtual Blackboard´s action is legal but completely dishonest. They know they are asking for things that don’t belong to them. I am happy to see that this situation backfires on them: Piracy should no be allowed in the educational world!! Adam Moniz Southampton University of Southampton http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_virtual_learning_environments Emanuele Colazzo Rome La Sapienza University - Rome Vincenzo K. Marcovecchio Montreal McGill University Richard Jones Beijing, China Independent What a patent absurdity! Alan Dow Lismore, NSW, Australia Open Universities Australia Dominique Cobbaert Belgium VTI Ostende jessica a Nedim Slijepcevic Maria Jose Rodriguez Spain Supercomputing Center of Galicia Martin Zhsg Niccolo Capanni Robert Lothian Aberdeen James Manis Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada Lethbridge College John Maurice Drew luigi fantauzzo roma la sapienza it' a indecenz Hyun You Im Ealing Thames Valley University Johan A. van Zanten The University of Texas at Austin Testing testing Anthony Forth Fabio Fioretti Italy "La Sapienza" University of Rome, Italy Leat Mechlovitz Binghamton NY Binghamton University Jon Camfield Washington, DC, USC GWU hot patar indonesia Engineering disagree for blackboard Ramón México Developer (e-Learning) Black boar is crazy Edgar Amorim YourNightmare Are you folks (Blackboard, Desire2Learn, Moodle, OpenSource, etc...) still thinking that you can make ANY money on the internet? Just need to have the right business model? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA... Dream on, stupid folks :-P Agung John Mexico City Milk México, AC Bouley Hélène Université du Québec à Montréal raphael boaventura Brazil USP Jeremy Blumenfeld sanjay shame on blackboard! Marc Couture Sherbrooke Université de Sherbrooke Bad thing for e-learning, will only push people to go to other solutions. This is SCO vs Linux all over again. Amarildo R. Ferrari Brazil David Xu Cornell MatzeNeu Germany Micheline Nuss Brazil É estutupido alguém querer patentear uma idéia. Tom Mahoney Ryan Strug North Carolina Southeast Raleigh High School Angel Pérez Manso Spain University of the Basque Country Allen Franco Rio de Janeiro Fiocruz Hi, i want to know some things... Felipe Perucho González Werner Braun ummhamna Fukuoka, Japan Kyushu University Jose Mesa Tenerife, Spain IES Cesar Manrique Sri Hastjarjo Indonesia Thomas C. Hudson, Ph.D. Wilmington, NC University of North Carolina, Wilmington daryl Fredy Kurniawan It make fooling of people. If you want to become rich, do by the proper way. Ferry Haris Indonesia University of Indonesia i hate monopoly Hari JIPI Jakarta Brian Schwartz Chicago Depaul University Dee South Africa Isivivane Open up learning to all is what the internet was originally designed for Keep it that way!!!! Bryan English MI, USA ariawan japan tokyo university Tan Sofyan Japan The University of Tokyo Brett Drinkwater Aus New Frontier Aust Devil Doodle Be rational on getting patents. Eventhough Patents = Money. Peter Melse London Fanshawe College James Bourne University of Phoenix The patent madness must stop! Colin Broughton Edmonton, Canada Just say no to thugs. Karla Robles Mexico D. F. RO75 they already asked its clients who think on their attempt of monopoly? Mario Granillo Mexico D. F. RO75 You are crazy!!!! Timothy O'Connor RMIT Robert B Dow Brisbane QUT Clearly flawed patents. Learning systems have evolved with the net. It is a matter of urgency that these obscene patents are overturned. Agus Lengky XL Stupid djoko Tavis Rudd Vancouver, BC Damn Simple Solutions Ltd. David Rahman PT. Tripatra Engineers & Constructors Ipan Ehmmmm.... no no no!!! Thomas Lehner VTC yulianto jadmiko yogyakarta(Indonesia) Gajah mada university tsulusun Indonesia ITB emang Gak mutu tuh blackboard kayak microsoft aja Suherman K Sorowako, INDONESIA This is would blocks the spreading of knowledge ! Herman Syukur Indonesia STIN Mohan Thomas India HIFX This is really an absurd patent..online learning has evolved over the traditional class room learning. Well can some one claim patent the art of class room delivery? erry rismawan indonesia pertamina learning is the right of human being no matter what the metode. claim to it is against the human rights. Muhammad Padli darmawan Jakarta, Indonesia VICO Indonesia I agree to boycott this patent since it will repres the transfer of knowledge Yusuf Effendi Jakarta Indonesia Yang jelas stupid alias goblok sih pihak institusi yang memberikan patent tersebut. Bayu Badra Eri Laksmono Jakarta - Indonesia Matari Advertising "Blackboard" will be a barrier of knowledge & science development (human right). wahyu Ridwan Kurniawan Jakarta EMP Kangean Mark Vernon Virginia, USA The Virtual Training Company Inc Mark A. Nicolosi Springfield, MO Ozark Technical Community College Anthony Suess Georgia Gwinnett Technical College Haim Arbeitman Wolfgang Dobler Calgary University of Calgary Roger Rué Valls (Spain) Tony Davis Tucson, AZ HVACReducation Brett Lucas London, UK Michael Chassen Monaco, France BBored Let them eat cake! Alex GUERRIN FRANCE ONLINEFORMAPRO Claire de la Varre USA University of North Carolina Bryan Berretta How can you patent the concept of a LMS? To say that Blackboard can sue over the use of a LMS is the most rediculous thing I have ever heard. The fact that Blackboard is obviously in the business of making money over the goal of education should motivate everyone away from Blackboard. Shawn FArrier UK Plume Se Emiliano Roma La Sapienza I agree with Sterbini! Vincent François Montréal Consultation Boréale Joe Alberta Pff. Money obsessed. Donnet Maïlis Belgium Insas Douglas Seidler Boston, MA Suffolk University Matthieu France Michael Green Solihull, UK Sixth Form College, Solihull LUGAN Cyril FRANCE ESEO Rikelynck Didier belgium What will be next ? Forbidden to use chalk on black board ? Emmanuel Donnet Brussels Banlieues ASBL Another unreal patent. Leon Erasmus South Africa CARBONE A have create my first LMS on 2000 ... but i don't have use a brevet to block the developpement of another actor ! steve Ledek Jose Luis Figueroa Chile The education is one of the most important human rights. We cannot allow nor tolerate educative patents. Torbjørn Marø Bergen, Norway serck david serck serck Dave Caulton Dekalb, IL Northern Illinois University dav france Gedix !!! Mathieu SCHOHN FRANCE IUT ROBERT SCHUMAN TomCallhagan Atlanta, CNN -Atlanta barth paris tourelle Tottosche Belguim asteri139 Truchon Zikrija Frederic Sauger Champaign, IL University f Illinois Quentin Grimaud Istres, France Nettresor.com Celton Yoann Antoine Sango C'est inadmissible ! NeO School Morgan France Student in France Vivian Tom france college Maxime Hurtrel France SebSora money money money benqezza driss France University of lille No no no! françois Dupuich St jean , Douai , France Dupuich Markus Pscheidt No software patents! Mark Warschauer University of California, Irvine Bryan Pfaffenberger Charlottesville, VA University of Virginia Madero Federico Fissore Italy nosoftwarepatents.com Paolo Sacconier Italy Furio Petrossi Udine, Italy Liceo Scientifico Marinelli - UDINE; IRES FVG Blackboard lives "On the Shoulders of Giants" (so said Newton), so the (copy)rights of Giants are abolished? Marco Castronovo Italy Preben Nielsen Denmark Internationale Business College Matthias Scheja London Klaus Kirchner Germany Universitaet Heidelberg Marco Grazia Italy StilisticaMente Peter Gawinski Kolding, Denmark International Business College question WHY CAN SOMEONE ELSE SIGN THIS PETITION BY USING MY IDENTITY?????? this is dumb This is dumb. Read the patent. It's not a patent on e-learning, more like the way their e-learning works. Matt McGill Beth Long Steven Olson Edmonton Alberta Canada University of Alberta Paul Smith Rocklin, CA perhaps Blackboard should also patent online grades, comments, blogs... shoot... the Internet. Has anyone put a patent on the wheel yet??? Dang... Blackboard should get a patent for the wheel!!!! Stephen E Frost Vincent Murphy Malaysia Prior art for this patent existed years ago. What a ridiculous patent. Theodore Kolokolnikov Halifax, Canada Dalhousie University Hans de Zwart Amsterdam, NL De Zwart Onderwijs Technologie Anthony Suddaby London, UK Software patents always seem to be used by companies that cannot compete in the marketplace to knock out their competitors. Karl Burnard Sheffield Firth Park Community Arts College Steven Hughes, PhD Minneapolis, MN University of Minnesota Garry McNeilly Jason Zagami Brisbane, Australia "He who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to perpetrate it" Martin Luther King Paul Bissonnette If it is not open source it will not be used. Lisa Bathe Evangelos Milios Steven Lasch Santa Cruz, California lisa gibons australia We will extend the boycott also to include universities which use or implement the Blackboard system. The information will be circulated throughout Asia. Tim Won J. Greer Texas This is an absurd patent! James Gregory Sheffield, UK How on earth can the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office have awarded such a patent without realising that Blackboard clearly DID NOT invent e-learning. It is gross misconduct that such a wide scoped patent could even be issued! I'll gladly stick to my open-source solutions, thank you very much BB. frank sapp Ginger Pedersen Lake Worth Palm Beach Communit y College Clayton Williams Michigan Central Michigan University This is an unreasonable patent, as it would as much as saying I hold the patent for walking. Tom Edwards California Laurel Springs School Bjarne Mortensen Denmark Danish Blackboard User Group This is really BB behaviour!!! We are VERY disappointed. Most of their Danish clients will leave mostly because of pricing but also because of receiving absolute no interest from BB. BE ASHAMED BB!! David Mozealous San DIego Anthony Hepp Michigan, USA Richard Sim Chris Edwards United Kingdom UK DEFENCE Long Live Moodle Juan Lupaix belize none yeah, take that! Manfred Kellermann Germany bfe-Oldenburg der absolute Patent-Wahnsinn!!! Jeff Swain Univversity Park, PA Penn State Vegard A. Johansen Norway Rennkuckuck Germany Martin Suchocki Vikas Garud Ludo (Marc Alier) Badalona (Spain) Jan Zwerschke Germany flashag.de Ein eigenes Produkt soll auch ein eigenes Patent bekommen. Aber welches Patentamt erlaubt es sich einer Produktgruppe als Patent zu genehmigen? Zumal es ja auch ein solches Produkt schon auf dem Markt gibt! Es ist also auch kein neues Produkt geschaffe. Blackboard darf frech sein wie es will, das Patentamt sollte hier Ziel der Attacke sein! Its own product is to get also its own patent. But which patent office permits to approve itself it to a product group as patent? Particularly since there is already also such a product on the market! Thus also nothing new was created. Blackboard may be impudent like it wants, the patent office should a goal of the attack here to be! This text was translated by Google. Rosa Rey España con ñ ¿Cuál será la siguiente patente? ¿El uso de un idioma? ¿Apretar botones y teclas? Y ¡cuidado! el doble click creo que ya está patentado. Richard Taylor UK NWHC :( Peter Dean UK Juan Rodríguez Marticorena Coruña (Spain) Myself Knowledge for everybody, copyrights get out! Lord Vader Melbourne, Victoria RMIT Jim Hewitt Castle College Ted Walker Quorn, Leicestershire, UK Rawlins Community College Sydney Weidman Winnipeg, Manitoba University of Winnipeg The patent system does not serve software innovation at all. In fact, patents are a threat to software innovation everywhere. Please stop this madness now! Wai-Leng Wong Australia Janice MacDonald Edmonton, Alberta Grant MacEwan College Abhik Ghosh Norman H. Murdoch University of Cincinnati Noël Van Herreweghe Brussels - Belgium Flemish Government - Belgium shame on this company. David Willington Sheffield, UK Palash Jean-Christophe Helary Japan LeRoy Hill Anguilla ALHCS This is a sad twist to opensource education management solutions...let us fight them to the last drop... Indranil Das Gupta Floor van Herreweghe New York New York University Anirban Biswas A. Mani Kolkata, India Calcutta Mathematical Society Alyce Wood Shame on you, Blackboard! Julie Phillips Christopher Phillips Pleasant Grove, UT T. E. Matthews Canada Is there NO review at the patent office. Who works there? Where have they been for the past 15 years? Mikel ORDIZIA (Gipuzkoa) - SPAIN Jakintza Ikastola Maite Ordizia Jakintza Ikastola Frances Long Vancouver, Canada knowplace.ca There is much work created before Blackboard requested a patent that seems to have been ignored. Laura Gibbs Norman, Oklahoma USA University of Oklahoma Tom Chapman Phoenix The rSmart Group Frank Schenk Frankfurt, Germany CEB-Systems Mr. X Stefanie Rühl Berlin Humboldt University Berlin Olaf Kriseleit Berlin, Germany College of Fine Arts No Software Patents! Lore Ress Germany Daten + Dokumentation GmbH jana tietze berlin, germany humboldt-university open source rules :) Heinz-Günter Kuper Berlin Humboldt University Anibal de la Torre Palma del Rio - Cordoba - Spain IES Antonio Gala Peter Collier Eggerts, Jörg Warendorf Berufskolleg Warendorf Michael Steinböck Wien Anthony Ryan-Lorraine Santa Cruz CA Comcourse, Inc Elizabeth Nestle Santa Cruz, CA Comcourse, Inc. Onno K. Gent Margaret Bulger Fiachra O'Sullivan Comcourse Amelia Timbers Santa Cruz Clausen Robert Fuchs Austria Henning T. Heil Rüsselsheim, Germany H-Quadrat.it Olaf Kayser QuizComposer Dr. Volker Goebbels Germany Michael Horst Stop the misuse of the Software-Giants Chris Stanton Halifax N/A Tobias Nutt Martin Wilhelm Leidig Stop software patents! Gerhard Bartosch Austria unbelievable Sabine Cikic Berlin / Germany TU Berlin No software monopolies, Open Source rules! Sebastian Dathe Berlin Sabina Jeschke Berlin TU Berlin H. Scheel Berlin / Germany Technical University of Berlin ...it was just a question of time that someone would try that... Now it's up to "the" customers to teach Blackboard a lesson! James Chellis Comcourse Ridiculous! Thomas Ramirez Arequipa D. Dont TCD Susana Canelo Del Valle - Argentina EEMNº3 Dietmar Wagner Germany Remember Pyrrhus! Lukas Becker Martin Ballaschk University Potsda Frank Altvater Germany Shame on such an idea. A counterproductively behaviour against a worldwide social developement. It couldn't be legal to confine LMS only to the minority of the affluent part of mankind. Marco Fecher lynette chadwick Berkshire East Berkshire College Outrageous! Ruth Gunstone University of Sheffield Eugenio Martínez Rodríguez Río Piedras, Puerto Rico Universidad de Puerto Rico Brett Royles UK, Sheffield King Edward VII School Lesley Anne Binks Chiti León (España) Universidad de León David Álvarez Cristino Montañez Seoul, Korea Jesse Patterson Ohio Software Patents need to be sacked. This is but one example of many showing how the system is being completely abused. Nils Denice Deville Spokane WA Jo Harris Kent, UK Dr Rajiv Srinivasa Wakefield, UK Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust Edward Chiang Toronto, Ontario, Canada Learn Training Centre Blackboard is the HIV/AIDS of human civilization. Let's stamp it out! Let's raise fund for Desire2Learn to beat Blackborad. Elliot Smith UK mooch labs Companies have to learn that throwing patents around is not the way to conduct business in the modern software industry. David Parry University at Albany Matt Post Rochester, NY University of Rochester Alan Harris GB Alharris.co.uk ltd Blackboard should face serious legal censure in carrying out this fraudulent claim. The educational establishment must not have dealings with this company, ever again. Albert Delgado Chicago Whittier School Derek Kaczmarczyk Champaign-Urbana University of Illinois Blackboard needs to punished for attempting this stunt. Eric Knapp Madison Area Technical College Sam Rose Michigan USA John Davis North Carolina No software patents!! No monopolies!! Daniel Warner London, UK Jere Majava Helsinki University of Helsinki mary ann zhang I would also like the fight to be directed at the officers that granted the patent. They ought to be charged with some offense. Who in their right mind thought it was a grantable patent? Edward Mansouri Tallahassee, Florida Ucompass.com, Inc. The granting of this patent seems completely inappropriate. Mary Burgess Wern Mülders-Hoffmann Solingen, Germany gbb Schon sehr peinlich, wenn man sich mit solchen Mitteln retten muss... Blackboard sollte sich in die allgemeine community für den Fortschritt in der Bildung einbinden, wie die Moodelaner.. Colin Lawson Salisbury UK I fully support this petition himmat singh new delhi, india Don't the patent autorities do any research before they award patents like these? Bryan Glenn Kevin ecollege.com no software patents! George Bush Chris Lavergne Vienna, VA. Hampshire College "The future of democracy depends in part on whether new technologies will be used for domination or democratization." ~Steven Best & Douglas Kellner... The consequences of this patent could be dire. Anil India Blackboard may please withdraw this patent ! Jani Lemmetyinen Joensuu University of Joensuu Israel Forés Barcelona IECI Art Gelwicks Juan Carlos Borrero Barranquilla - Colombia Universidad Simón Bolívar No to patents Ali Ghassemi Bill White Japan Mukogawa Women's University Guillermo Ramirez peter kilcoyne Worcester College of Technology very concerned about this think a boycott is a good idea. Tony Sheppard It is diabolical that they think that they can control something developed by so many people. Josep M. Fontana Barcelona Universitat Pompeu Fabra Had nothing against WebCT or Blackboard in the past. This patent changes things quite a bit. They should fire the executive that came up with the idea. This move has created an army of anti-Bb people. I'm one of them now. Wagner Destro Rio de Janeiro - Brasil UVA Petr Skoda Czech Republic Sadao Kusaka Rio de Janeiro - Brasil UVA Anthony Borrow Dallas, Texas Glenn Simsek Matthew Cannings Paul Booth UK Question Tools Jeff Wood Canada Joseph Wong Anton Pienaar David Berry UK Carr Hill High School Paul Nijbakker Tornio Kemi-Tornio University of Applied Sciences Chris Reed Emin Saglamer San Marcos, TX Texas State University - San Marcos Sarah Robbins Katherine Watson Ian Shanahan Ross Perkins Blacksburg, VA Virginia Tech I hope to be able to convince colleagues to move their Bb materials to other options. We've been experimenting with Sakai; there may be a means of getting a university-wide installation of Moodle if one does not already exist. I will be the first to sign up to help train faculty in non-Bb options. My use of Bb stops today. Theodore W King Wharton Derick Rethans Skien, Norway eZ systems Francesca Fitzgerald San Jose State University, School of Library Information Science Jeroen Frans Amsterdam Boo! Lewis Pike UK Selby College Bernie Salvaggio Philadelphia GradeConnect.com A patent on education. Need I really say more? Ian MacLeod Halifax NS NSCC Ronald T Blechner New Jersey Out of Bounds Software Chris Hambly United Kingdom Audiocourses.com Jennifer Vatza Philadelphia, PA Moore College of Art & Design