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Supreme Court Skeptical of Computer-Based Patents
walterbyrd (182728) writes "The case, Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank International, poses huge risks for both sides. If the court upholds the patent or rules only narrowly against it without affecting most others, the problem of too many patents — and patent lawsuits — will continue. In that case, Justice Stephen Breyer said, future competition could move from price and quality to 'who has the best patent lawyer.'"
COULD move from price and quality to 'who has the best patent lawyer'?
What COULD? How about we accept the reality it's already happened?
I beg to differ. I create things all of the time and have realized that, even with a patent, I'm not rich enough to litigate it.
Why can't all fpga/microcontroller manufacturers just release free optimizing compilers???
I should add, the only people who think patents should be abolished are people who don't create anything.
It only takes a single example to reveal how untrue that statement is. To say that no authors can disagree with you is incredibly arrogant.
It's also a mere ad hominem, so it's not even logical. Even if someone doesn't "create" anything, that doesn't make their arguments wrong.
Anyone who creates has a different opinion.
Well, how nice of you to decide what everyone else thinks. I'm a software developer and 100% against patents. Am I not a "creator"? Are you going to resort to a No True Scotsman now?
but ranting around about getting rid of them just makes you look ignorant.
I rant about getting rid of them because I value real private property rights (the ability to use your own resources to accomplish some goal, which at present may infringe upon some patent) over monopolies over procedures enforced by worthless government thugs.
I should add, no human being disagrees with me. If you disagree, you're not a True Human.
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Which effectively meant, it a competitor saw our system at work, copied it and patented it we'd probably be willing to pay them a license fee just to get off our backs
Prior art, surely?
You still have to hire a legal defense to plead Prior Art. Meanwhile, the plaintiff's attorney has already done enough research to tell them how much to hit you for licensing, if they don't want to outright kill you (with an injunction) but are happy to just bleed you to death, while they take the proceeds and fund more IP research to see whomever else they can bully - thus limiting competition - so they don't have to perform better service or offer a superior product. Quite contrary to the spirit of the patent clause in the Constitution, I assure you.
A feeling of having made the same mistake before: Deja Foobar
I've waffled between being against them or pushing for reform; currently, I'm against them. Here's why:
1. If you're being trolled, they're bad.
2. If you're a troll, you're not creating anything other than lawsuits.
3. If you created something and are small business (don't retain an in-house lawyer or thirty), you can't afford to defend your patent anyway -- its only value is to be part of a portfolio to boost your value if you sell out to someone with lots of money (here, your invention isn't what's valued, but your patent and its war chest strength).
4. If you created something and are a big business, you have the choice of being mired in the current patent sinkhole, or competing purely on how mobile your company is -- innovation and all that, which is what patents were supposed to supprot.
So any way you look at it, the current system is bad. I'm starting to think that it has got to the point where it is almost totally detrimental.
Note that I'm talking about the patent system as it pertains to software patents, not physical inventions. THAT patent system just needs reform.
And yes, I'm a creator in many fields, and even have my name on a patent or two.