Posts: 38,525
Threads: 0
Joined: Feb 2002
Location: East Texas
competition is good for the consumer and the market, as long as the competition doesn't infringe on the guys patents....which is what the courts decide.
Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away. - Philip K. Dick
Mark
Posts: 5,653
Threads: 0
Joined: May 2005
Location: Centre County Pennsylvania
IP really isn't the lifeblood of high tech. First to market with the best product is the lifeblood of high tech. You have to have patents because otherwise your competitors will sue you. If nobody could do that, we would still have plenty of innovation. It takes longer to get a patent than the lifetime of most products. They simply aren't necessary in high tech.
It seems that the standard for patents has changed for the better, it just hasn't propagated all the way through the system. So many patents are simply a vehicle to run up bills and waste the taxpayer's money running courts to use the full power of the government for private gain. We don't get enough out of it to pay for it, patent fees should be a lot higher.
One of my favorite examples of how patents hold back progress is 3d printers. There is a lot of innovation now. Why? The basic patents have expired. So now there is going to be a new round of patents. So I would expect a new round of innovation in 20 years.