3 ms·
If patent law worked like coodies that comment would be awesome.
by baudehlo 10y ago
If patent law worked like coodies that comment would be awesome.
- gregshap 10y agoThe interpretation of IP law, at least internally at many big software companies, does in fact work like coodies. Hence things like "clean room implementations" of algorithms, modules, API interfaces etc.
- vidarh 10y agoClean room matters for copyright. It doesn't help for patents, as patents protects the idea, not the expression of it so expressing the same idea in a different way doesn't help. With a patent you want to know the specifics of the original to ensure you make yours sufficiently different to sidestep the claims. Where not knowing helps with patents it is in that if you infringe, wilfull infringement increases damages up to threefold.
- vidarh 10y agoWillful infringement allows the court to give judgements for up to triple compensatory damages in the US, so sometimes not knowing can be valuable.