Software Patents - Time for change

TeeJay on 2006-12-03T10:41:56

http://www.researchoninnovation.org/swconf/resources.htm

useful resource.. but there are much more persuasive references as well, disproving the myths that software patents are anything but a hinderence to innovation and business.

Some gem's include the fact that it costs more to patent software than the R&D itself, which entirely defeats the purpose of patents in encouraging R&D spending.

Patent cost vs R&D cost

DAxelrod on 2006-12-03T21:03:25

I haven't yet had a chance to read most of the linked articles, but I was going to play devil's advocate for a second.

• If you plan to make money by licensing the patent, the R&D and patent fees are both investments on eventual return, right?
• If you do not plan to make money by licensing the patent, isn't it cheaper to publish the results of your R&D anyway rather than risk somebody else patenting it and suing you?

And then I realized the least risky proposition in either case is to just not do the R&D, which is the opposite of what the patent system is supposed to encourage. Yet another reason why the patent system is horribly, horribly broken.