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What century was this? The US didn't sign a comprehensive patent treaty until near the end of the 19th century, so we were under no moral or legal obligation to
by learc83 7y ago
What century was this? The US didn't sign a comprehensive patent treaty until near the end of the 19th century, so we were under no moral or legal obligation to honor another countries internal patents before then.
The US also kept people in slavery for close to a century--I don't think that's a good excuse for a modern developing nation to practice slavery.
- fspeech 7y agoNo one has any obligation to honor another country's "internal patents". Patents are only enforceable in the countries that grant them. US patents are granted by the US government. To ignore them in the US is to violate US laws, not Chinese laws. Patents granted by the Chinese government have no legal force in the US in the first place.
- learc83 7y agoThat's was probably the wrong way to word it because yes foreign patents aren't enforced by the US. The Paris treaty I was referring to regulates why a patent can be denied. For instance its says that the US has to treat patent applications from citizens of member countries the same as US petitioners. For example, the US can't show favoritism to domestic companies (with respect to other countries who've signed the treaty) when granting patents--they can't just deny patent protections to Chinese petitioners because they are Chinese. (I'm guessing there are nation security exceptions, but I'm not an expert, I've just researched this from a business perspective.) And the US has to honor the priority date of foreign signatories patents (assuming certain conditions are met).
- TheSpiceIsLife 7y agoI don't know the specifics, but presumably this is what a patent treaty is designed to cope with?