4 ms·

Politicians and Pundits Make Some Noise About Patent Reform

13 points by grellas 15y ago

nextparadigms 15y ago
"Right now, Congress can send me a bill that would make it easier for entrepreneurs to patent a new product or idea—because we can't give innovators in other countries a big leg up when it comes to opening new businesses and creating new jobs." Sigh. He's going in completely the wrong direction. If anything patents (at least software ones) should be harder to get, not easier. Obama seems clueless about this, but I don't really blame him for not realizing this. He's probably just bending his ear to the wrong people/lobbyists. And what's with that nonsense about innovators in other countries. What does that have to do with the US patent system? Is he saying people are not building start-ups right now because they can't get patents? If anything they can't hire enough people because they have to spend them on "patent infringement lawsuits", and some of them are even leaving the country to start their businesses there, because of these lawsuits. Making it easier and faster for patent trolls to get patents will only make this worse. Obama actually sounds like he's reciting someone else's line here.
- apotheon 15y ago
  I think the patent system should be sped up a lot -- but only for the process of denying patents. We certainly don't need to ease and accelerate the process of granting them. These idiots who think that speeding up patent grants will create jobs are completely out of touch. If anything, making it faster and easier to get patents will eliminate jobs by increasing the hostility of many industries (especially software) to actual innovators by putting more power in the hands of the largest, most stagnant firms in the business. > "Obama seems clueless about this, but I don't really blame him for not realizing this. . . . Obama actually sounds like he's reciting someone else's line here." That sounds like a great reason to blame Obama.
  - monochromatic 15y ago
    Examination in general should be sped up, and that goes for allowing as well as rejecting. It doesn't do anybody any good for a real technological innovation to languish on an examiner's desk for four years.
nhebb 15y ago
The bottom line is, you're not going to get legal reform out of a bunch of lawyers (i.e. Congress, and in this case, the President).

13 points by grellas 15y ago

"Right now, Congress can send me a bill that would make it easier for entrepreneurs to patent a new product or idea—because we can't give innovators in other countries a big leg up when it comes to opening new businesses and creating new jobs." Sigh. He's going in completely the wrong direction. If anything patents (at least software ones) should be harder to get, not easier. Obama seems clueless about this, but I don't really blame him for not realizing this. He's probably just bending his ear to the wrong people/lobbyists. And what's with that nonsense about innovators in other countries. What does that have to do with the US patent system? Is he saying people are not building start-ups right now because they can't get patents? If anything they can't hire enough people because they have to spend them on "patent infringement lawsuits", and some of them are even leaving the country to start their businesses there, because of these lawsuits. Making it easier and faster for patent trolls to get patents will only make this worse. Obama actually sounds like he's reciting someone else's line here.

apotheon 15y ago
I think the patent system should be sped up a lot -- but only for the process of denying patents. We certainly don't need to ease and accelerate the process of granting them. These idiots who think that speeding up patent grants will create jobs are completely out of touch. If anything, making it faster and easier to get patents will eliminate jobs by increasing the hostility of many industries (especially software) to actual innovators by putting more power in the hands of the largest, most stagnant firms in the business. > "Obama seems clueless about this, but I don't really blame him for not realizing this. . . . Obama actually sounds like he's reciting someone else's line here." That sounds like a great reason to blame Obama.
- monochromatic 15y ago
  Examination in general should be sped up, and that goes for allowing as well as rejecting. It doesn't do anybody any good for a real technological innovation to languish on an examiner's desk for four years.

nhebb 15y ago

The bottom line is, you're not going to get legal reform out of a bunch of lawyers (i.e. Congress, and in this case, the President).