The United States Supreme Court has decided to hear the appeal in Alice Corporation Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank International, et al. on the issue of whether computer-implemented inventions are patentable subject matter. This is an appeal from an en banc decision of the CAFC in which the panel of ten judges had written seven separate decisions with a majority holding the claims to be non-patentable.

My blog post covering the en banc decision has links to the claims and the decision. The question presented in the petition was:

Whether claims to computer-implemented inventions—including claims to systems and machines, processes, and items of manufacture—are directed to patent-eligible subject matter within the meaning of 35 U.S.C. § 101 as interpreted by this Court?

What is needed is a consistent, cohesive, and accessible approach to the §101 analysis — a framework that will provide guidance and predictability for patent applicants and examiners, litigants, and the courts. (page 9)

Perhaps the United States Supreme Court will provide this clarity by taking up this case.