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Twitter: 'We Promise To Not Be a Patent Troll'

Posted by Soulskill on from the gesture-of-goodwill dept.

Fluffeh writes "Twitter today unveiled a bold new commitment that will be made in writing to its employees — the company will not use any patents derived from employee inventions in offensive lawsuits without the inventor's permission. Twitter has written up a draft of what it calls the 'Innovator's Patent Agreement,' or IPA, which encourages its developers to invent without the fear that their inventions will be used for nefarious purposes. 'The IPA is a new way to do patent assignment that keeps control in the hands of engineers and designers. It is a commitment from Twitter to our employees that patents can only be used for defensive purposes,' Messinger wrote. 'We will not use the patents from employees' inventions in offensive litigation without their permission. What's more, this control flows with the patents, so if we sold them to others, they could only use them as the inventor intended.'"

4 of 103 comments (clear)

  1. Worthless by gweihir · · Score: 3, Insightful

    They can just coerce or bribe the employee in question. "Don't want to sue? Well, I guess that promotion will not be coming down after all."

    This is an act of manipulation and misdirection and just as amoral as that sounds.

    --
    Most ACs are not even worth the keystrokes to insult them. Be generically insulted by this and ignored otherwise.
    1. Re:Worthless by wisnoskij · · Score: 3, Insightful

      It sounds like this contract is not to make the company look good publicly so much as it is to provide a more reasonable and innovative environment for its workers.
      And while the possibly of bribery might make you not think that the contract will stop trolling it is still very good for the inventor (who gets the bribe).

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      Troll is not a replacement for I disagree.
    2. Re:Worthless by gweihir · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Oh, even if they are honest now, there will come a point in the future where they will rethink this. And then they will discover they have plenty of loopholes. That they do not take this future into account makes them dishonest and evil now, because they promise something worthwhile but must know they cannot deliver.

      --
      Most ACs are not even worth the keystrokes to insult them. Be generically insulted by this and ignored otherwise.
    3. Re:Worthless by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

      You live in a sad world. It's no wonder people give up trying to good things when there are people like you to tell them how they are evil for even trying. I'd rather a company try to do something good and fail than be such a cynic as to see the world through your eyes.