Posts Tagged: "fire of genius"

Inconvenient Truth: America no longer fuels the fire of creative genius with the patent system

The problem with not having an independent invention defense, according to Lemely, is that people who invent themselves couldn’t possibly find out about what others have invented because these inventions lay in unpublished patent applications at the Patent Office. “You have people who genuinely tried not to infringe,” Lemley said… While Professor Lemley is entitled to his opinion, and he is an excellent and formidable attorney that no one should ever take for granted, he is not entitled to his own facts. Deliberate disdain for patent property is a purposeful business model driving mega-tech IT incumbents. This business model is called “efficient infringement.” Efficient infringement is a cold-hearted business calculation whereby businesses decide it will be cheaper to steal patented technology than to license it and pay a fair royalty to the innovator, which they would do if they were genuinely trying not to infringe as Professor Lemley suggests.

Lincoln loved our patent system, Let’s not tear it down

Abraham Lincoln once called the patent system one of the three greatest advances in human history, along with the discovery of America and the printing press… The result is a patent system in crisis, which threatens our economic future. Small businesses received 30 percent of U.S. patents in 2000. Last year the number plummeted to 19.5 percent. Small companies undertake the risk and expense of developing breakthrough technologies that made us the most prosperous nation in history. When they lose confidence in the patent system the country will suffer.

Celebrating Presidents Who Advocated for the U.S. Patent System

President George Washington and President Abraham Lincoln both played an important role in the development of the U.S. patent system. Given that today we celebrate these Presidents, what better way for us to honor Presidents Washington and Lincoln than by reviewing their role in the U.S. patent system and their various interactions with the U.S. Patent Office. While it will be a hard pill to swallow for those who seek to dismantle the patent system, both Presidents Washington and Lincoln were strong proponents of a properly functioning patent system.