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"We're making the choice not to patent it." Now that the US is first-to-file, doesn't that mean someone else can patent it and use the patent against them? Isn
by danellis 10y ago
"We're making the choice not to patent it."
Now that the US is first-to-file, doesn't that mean someone else can patent it and use the patent against them? Isn't the best thing to patent it and give royalty-free licenses?
- Xylakant 10y agoNow that there is proof of prior art this isn't patentable any more. You can't patent the wheel either. However, that doesn't mean that an attempt at patenting it wouldn't pass, but you could get it invalidated.
- jacquesm 10y agoThere isn't anything that you could patent here to begin with.
- nullc 10y agoNo, this is a common misunderstanding of the implications of first to file. Publication or public practice of their work is prior art. It immediately precludes third parties from patenting their work. (And, after a grace period will preclude them as well) First to file deals with interferences, when two parties try to patent the same work at the same time-- it doesn't change how prior art works. Of course, it is still useful to file defensively since relevant prior art is much more likely to be discovered when it exists as a patent... if it's not discovered a patent could be incorrectly issued. (The patent would be invalid-- but could still be used to harass people until put out of its misery by a court. :) )