Re: The paradoxical nature of freedom (was Re: Do patents really foster innovation?)

From: Lee Daniel Crocker (lee@piclab.com)
Date: Tue Mar 11 2003 - 11:50:29 MST

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    > > Let's say it differently then. Patents reduce the ability to
    > > innovate and to extend previous innovations. This is seen
    > > especially clearly in the case of software patents.
    >
    > Extending previous innovations with new innovations are not restricted
    > by patent law, as anyone who has done patent research can attest. In
    > any patent application the applier lists prior art that the innovator
    > builds on with new innovations. Furthermore, because patents protect
    > innovators abilities to recoupe and earn a profit on their investment,
    > they stimulate innovation. Stifling patents stifles innovation and
    > therefore slows the amplification of freedom that technology creates.

    This is simply disingenuous. It is a simple and undeniable fact
    that a patent for a derivative invention will only be awarded if the
    new invention crosses a certain threshhold of "novelty". If it is
    not sufficiently novel, it is seen as an application of the previous
    invention, and is forbidden. One can argue that forbidding others
    from making new applications of old inventions protects the market
    for the older invention (assuming there is a market for it), but to
    deny that the patent restricts the freedom of others is dishonest.

    > Furthermore, it is a matter of investment security. Investors want to
    > invest in tangible assets. A patent is tangible, while a business plan
    > to invest in an unprotected innovation is not tangible. Guess what
    > attracts the investment capital? The truly innovative get it while the
    > mere copycat with a slick marketing plan has to scrounge.

    Why is the "innovation" any more inherently valuable than a
    "slick marketing plan"? Don't they both create value in the market?
    Aren't they both products of ingenuity and creativity? Why should
    we inherently value one over the other?

    > Eliminating patent protections enhances market tendencies toward
    > mercantilism and oligopolies.

    ...and it also eliminates barriers to entry for small companies
    that fight oligolopolies.

    -- 
    Lee Daniel Crocker <lee@piclab.com> <http://www.piclab.com/lee/>
    "All inventions or works of authorship original to me, herein and past,
    are placed irrevocably in the public domain, and may be used or modified
    for any purpose, without permission, attribution, or notification."--LDC
    


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