In general I agree with the author. I used to be a patent free advocate but when we started our medical hardware startup that dream sort of came crashing down.

In general I agree with the author. I used to be a patent free advocate but when we started our medical hardware startup that dream sort of came crashing down. In the medical space it is almost impossible to work without patents, there are huge giants who would not hesitate to snap up your idea. I've heard similar stories from others in the hardware space around Brisbane. This coupled with the face that any sort of large scale manufacturing takes a large amount of time and capital makes it very difficult to continue in the hardware (and medical) space without some sort of protection on your idea. Perhaps yes 20 years is too long but I think for now patents still have a place in startups.