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I agree with the spirit of your post but realize that selling patents is one way inventors can realize value. If companies couldn't use them as commodities, the

• chc 15y ago
  I thought so at first, but that just begs the question: So what if they're less valuable that way? The purpose of the patent system is not to maximize the monetary value of patents. I mean, the status quo makes patents less valuable than they would be if the government offered a pile of gold to patent-holders every five years, but that doesn't mean the government should offer them gold. The question is, would patents still serve their purpose well enough under such a system? Would inventors be unduly discouraged from getting patents? That doesn't seem likely. Solo inventors would just sell a license to the patent rather than the patent itself. And the biggest deterrent for lone inventors has always been the expense of getting a patent in the first place. That wouldn't change.