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Guaranteeing profit is not why patents exist in the first place. They exist "to promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts." It is not about profit, but r

Guaranteeing profit is not why patents exist in the first place. They exist "to promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts." It is not about profit, but rather about overall progress and benefits for society at large. I think there's a good argument to be made that the current system now falls short of this goal and new rules are required.

tjic 17y ago
> Guaranteeing profit is not why patents exist in the first place. They exist "to promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts." ...and the way that they promote the progress of science and technology is to put a PROFIT MOTIVE in place, so that folks have more effective reasons than pure altruism to engage in research. Yeah, YOU might dedicate your career to finding important genes, instead of launching a software startup, because you care that much about other people. ...but what VC is going to pay for your lab and staff if he can't make a profit off of it? Bottom line: intellectual property is a government created kind of property, but it aligns incentives, and results in the progress of both science and technology.
- mynameishere 17y ago
  ...but what VC is going to pay for your lab and staff if he can't make a profit off of it? Plenty would, but you would have to use the more traditional method of patenting called "never releasing your research".