Celera Genomics (Rockville, MD) announced in October that it has sequenced some 1.2 billion bp (about a third) of the human genome and that this information was being released to private subscribers. Celera also announced that it would file provisional patent applications for 6,500 genome-related discoveries but would postpone deciding which of those applications to pursue fully. Several other companies, including Human Genome Sciences (Rockville, MD) and Incyte (Palo Alto, CA), are also sequencing human gene segments and have been filing patent applications to cover resulting sequence discoveries. These ventures could thwart a bid in the opposite direction—marked by top-level discussions between British Prime Minister Tony Blair and US President Bill Clinton that comes with agreement from members of the publicly funded International Consortium—to develop a no-patenting agreement.