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Intel Mandates Universities Receiving Funds Not File Patents
sproketboy writes "Since January, four U.S. universities have agreed to host Intel Science and Technology Centers that will be funded at the rate of $2.5 million a year for five years. But wait, there's a catch: the company has made it a condition that in order to receive the millions, your university must open source any resulting software and inventions that come out of this research funding."
In that scenario, the university publishes the idea and it becomes prior art.
While I like this idea, doesn't it cause problems with first to file?
I just imagine a scenario where a university discovers something, doesn't file a patent, and megacorp comes along and patents it. With first to file, Megacorp gets the patent.
Maybe there's something I'm missing, but to me it would seem better that the university file the patent, but not be able to enforce it.
As long as the university publishes their discoveries, there would be demonstrable prior art.
If I can be modded down for being a troll, can I be modded up for being an orc, or a balrog?
With first to file you still cannot patent anything that has already been published, so as long as the university publishes instead of sitting on the invention then nobody else can come along and file for a patent.
Intel simply doesn't want to pay for patents on ideas generates with its financial support. Here's the precedent they are trying to prevent from happening again: http://www.theinquirer.net/inquirer/news/1557536/intel-settles-university-wisconsin
For one, they are the only major GPU maker that actually releases open source drivers.
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This is so wrong I have to ask, are you mentally challenged? First to file does not change rules about publication or who can claim inventions. It only changes the rules covering what happens when two groups attempt to patent the same thing at nearly the same time.