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Why couldn't patents simply expire after x years? 2-3 years would give small companies with groundbreaking ideas enough time to develop and differentiate themse
by spurgu 13y ago
Why couldn't patents simply expire after x years? 2-3 years would give small companies with groundbreaking ideas enough time to develop and differentiate themselves from their competitors. After that everyone would have equal access to the idea and the world would be a better place as a result.
- belorn 13y agoI would very much like to see patent applicants having to argue for the length of the requested patent. When someone goes to the government and asks for financial support, they don't get a "one size fit all" cash bag. It matters how great in need you are, and how great an idea you have for a youth center. But when it comes to get an government enforced monopoly, no argument is even needed. No one will even ask if 3 years would be enough, or what the extra 17 years are there for. It's 20 year or nothing.
- danielweber 13y agoI've been in a place where a bigger company copied our work (including our typos!) and we finally used a patent for our lawyers to get them to knock it off. But it was very painful waiting the 2-3 years for the patent to be granted. We would have gladly taken a shorter term, like 8 years, in exchange for getting the patent granted faster. We didn't need to hold onto the stuff forever, but we needed some breathing room.
- webXL 13y agoThat certainly depends on the complexity of the product. Many take longer then that to successfully market. The last thing you want is a bigger competitor with a huge marketing department to copy your idea and get it out to market before you can.
- thaumasiotes 13y agohuh? Patents do expire after X years.
- dllthomas 13y agoMaybe they meant applications?
- robotresearcher 13y agoThey do. X == 20.