Delhi High Court Declines Patent Plea by Kroll for Peer-to-Peer User Location System

The Delhi High Court has rejected a plea by US-based Kroll Information Assurance seeking a patent for a “System to locate users via a Peer-to-Peer Network.”

Justice Amit Bansal cited Section 3(k) of the Patents Act, which excludes algorithms and computer programs per se from patentability.

The Court found the invention to be a conventional keyword-based search within a peer-to-peer network, lacking any technical effect or hardware advancement.

The court agreed with the Controller’s view that the invention was abstract and non-inventive. The ruling relied on Microsoft v. Controller of Patents to affirm the exclusion under Section 3(k).