[PDF] Protecting Sub Patentable Innovation eBook

Author : Jerome H. Reichman
Publisher :
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 39,42 MB
Release : 2023
Category :
ISBN :

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The global intellectual property system rests on a distinction between exclusive property rights and free competition. Exclusive rights vary in strength and intensity, but the opposite of protection is almost always free competition. Distinctions of intensity are drawn in terms of the length of protection given to different subject matters plus variable lists of exceptions and limitations to exclusive rights. But the bottom line is that, when protection is not available under the existing system, free competition prevails, and vice-versa (i.e. where there is exclusivity, free competition is deferred for a specified period of time).This Article departs from a different position. It suggests that this black-and-white approach does not work well for sub-patentable innovation, i.e. innovation that cannot meet the non-obviousness criteria of patent law but that nonetheless constitutes a novel and useful contribution to existing technical knowledge. The reason is that free competition often overwhelms and limits the incentives to invest in risky sub-patentable innovation from the outset because successful innovations obtain no exclusive rights by default, and competitors may dominate in practice once the validity of the innovation become an established fact. The very success of any given innovation thus stimulates competitors to enter the market, which threatens to impede the first innovator's ability to recuperate initial investment costs in a risky venture, not to mention profits. To address this problem, some countries have enacted sui generis regimes of exclusive property rights, notably in the form of utility model laws. However, this model necessarily evokes the question of either too much or too little protection. It only affords the first innovators an opportunity to recuperate their costs if they meet a relatively high standard of eligibility, thus discouraging the undertaking of such a risk from the outset. Moreover, imitating patents at the sub-patentable level raises serious questions of legitimacy in the first place, plus a very real and long-term set of impediments to free competition.This traditional approach thus ignores a second category of property rights that sounds in liability rules instead of property rights, a distinction first recognized by Guido Calabresi and Douglas Melamed. Recognizing this distinction could in turn open the door to a form of intermediate protection that seeks to address the risk of investment in sub-patentable innovation without the social costs of exclusivity. The history of intellectual property suggests that we have reached the outer limits of exclusive intellectual property experiments. Instead, the time has come to try a liability rule where barriers to entry are as undesirable as too much exclusivity. A carefully constructed liability rule could provide an intermediate format for an intermediate subject matter, without impeding the principle of free competition.

Author : U. Suthersanen
Publisher : Edward Elgar Publishing
Page : 217 pages
File Size : 31,56 MB
Release : 2007-01-01
Category : Law
ISBN : 1847204449

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For anyone with an interest in patent law, intellectual property law generally, and/or the interplay of policy and practice at the forefront of an essentially economic but ideology laden area of law, this is an excellent work providing much food for thought. . . This work is an excellent addition to the literature in the area and will fuel ongoing debate over reform. At the very least it will provide an interesting read for those with an interest in intellectual property law, or who practice in the area. The practice of law can all too easily exhibit the worst attributes of scholasticism; work such as this is an enjoyable remedy, and I recommend this book for all those who care to reflect upon the deeper themes of this area of law and who have an interest in the process of debate as opposed to advocacy for a particular position. . . A decent glass of something along with this book makes for an enjoyable few hours at the very least. Gus Hazel, New Zealand Law Journal The current patent system is both facilitator and stumbling block, as the editors recognise, and the problems raised by borderline inventions at the margins of patentability, as well as the detection and deterrence of free riders, reflect this ambiguity. The editors are to be congratulated on putting together such a good and enjoyable read, complete with a set of conclusions and recommendations. ipkat.com Clearly written in an accessible style, this book brings together economic thinking on innovation and legal thinking on unpatentable invention and sets them in the context of the legal systems in countries in various parts of the world. Its great merit is the emphasis on empirical and institutional analysis of theory and practice. It should inform IP policy-making everywhere. Ruth Towse, Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands This book asks whether or not protecting unpatentable innovation is a good idea, especially for developing countries. Edited by well-known specialists from the Queen Mary IP Institute and the Singapore IP Academy, who have included their own substantial contributions, the work contains a number of valuable empirical studies by national experts mainly from the Far East and Latin America on the operation of national utility models and other similar schemes designed to protect innovation outside the patent system. The book is essential reading for lawyers, economists, policy makers and NGOs concerned with how best to encourage national and regional innovation and economic prosperity. David Vaver, University of Oxford, UK Focusing on innovation and development, this book, easy to read and full of interesting detail, provides both valuable insight into the theoretical framework of innovation as supported by intellectual property protection and contains valuable case studies of national systems of innovation in the Pacific Rim States. Thomas Dreier, University of Karlsruhe, Germany This book is concerned with the extent to which innovations should or should not be protected as intellectual property, and the implications this has upon the ability of local manufacturers to learn to innovate. A question the book considers is how far legal protection should extend to inventions that may only just, or indeed not quite, meet the conventional criteria for patentability, in terms of the level of inventiveness. Innovation without Patents offers a thoughtful and empirically rich analysis of the current system in a number of developed and developing countries in the Asia-Pacific. It asks whether such innovations should remain free from patenting, or whether alternative intellectual property regimes should be offered in such cases, and indeed whether the requirements change depending on a country s level of development. This discussion is capped by a number of proposed policy options. The theoretical and practical approaches to intellectual property rights, innovation and development policy formulation make Innovation without Patents acce

Author : Joseph P. Kennedy
Publisher : John Wiley & Sons
Page : 262 pages
File Size : 15,81 MB
Release : 2012-07-31
Category : Law
ISBN : 1118410092

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A straightforward guide to inventing, patenting, and technology commercialization for scientists and engineers Although chemists, physicists, biologists, polymer scientists, and engineers in industry are involved in potentially patentable work, they are often under-prepared for this all-important field. This book provides a clear, jargon-free, and comprehensive overview of the patenting process tailored specifically to the needs of scientists and engineers, including: Requirements for a patentable invention How to invent New laws created by President Obama's 2011 America Invents Act The process of applying for and obtaining a patent in the U.S. and in foreign countries Commercializing inventions and the importance of innovation Based on lecture notes refined over twenty-five years at The University of Akron, How to Invent and Protect Your Invention contains practical advice, colorful examples, and a wealth of personal experience from the authors.

Author : Rafal Sikorski
Publisher : Kluwer Law International B.V.
Page : 474 pages
File Size : 19,13 MB
Release : 2021-02-16
Category : Law
ISBN : 9403524146

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Patents as an Incentive for Innovation Edited by Rafal Sikorski & Zaneta Zemla-Pacud Patents are a reward for human inventiveness. A well-functioning patent system must provide incentives for innovation, safeguard dynamic competition and protect the public interest – a balancing act fraught with difficulty in the ‘connected’ global world. This ground-breaking book is the first to deeply analyse how patent law today performs its function of stimulating innovation in the crucial sectors of healthcare, agriculture, artificial intelligence and communications technology. Patent specialists, practitioners and scholars from various jurisdictions thoroughly describe how patent rights can be deployed to incentivize investments in researching and developing socially critical innovations without sacrificing the public’s interest in sharing the benefits that are produced. Among the emerging issues of patent rights investigated are the following: protectability and morality of according private rights over material derived from the human body; licensing on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory (FRAND) terms; the supplementary protection certificate (SPC) manufacturing waiver; patent eligibility of artificial intelligence-related inventions; excessive enforcement of patents by patent assertion entities; enforcement of second medical use innovations; the so-called farmer’s privilege, the farm-save seed exemption, and breeders’ rights; international trade regulations and their influence on patent systems; human enhancement technologies and the consequences of patenting them; specifics of patent protection for biologic medicines; challenges posed by artificial intelligence for the disclosure requirement in patent law; and standard essential patent licensing, particularly in the context of the 5G standard. Perspectives taken into consideration by the authors include protectability criteria, length and scope of the granted protection, mechanisms for dealing with the friction between generalized application and specialized concerns, and rights enforcement. These aspects are analysed on the domestic, international and global levels. The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the urgent need to strike the right balance between innovation and access in healthcare and other technologies, a need rooted in patent law. Because the problems discussed – and solutions offered – in this collection of expert essays are of tremendous practical and cultural significance, the book will be of immeasurable value to practitioners, policymakers and researchers in patent law and other fields of intellectual property law.

Author : W. Kingston
Publisher : Springer Science & Business Media
Page : 353 pages
File Size : 35,75 MB
Release : 2013-04-17
Category : Law
ISBN : 9401712654

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1 When in the late seventies the Commission started its preparatory work on a plan of action(l) for the creation of a real Community Innovation market, obviously the question came up, how patents or industrial property could specifically help in stimulating technological and industrial innovation and technology transfer in the Community. From an earlier contractor's study(2) about possible items of action in patent law for the improvement of the impact of patents and patenting upon innovation, it was clear that, in principle, there was room for improvement but shortage of information as to how and to what extent efficient improvements should and could be made. 2 In the early 1980s then, the need for clarifying the potential for improve ment in patent law and patent practice became more pressing, so that the Commission convened an informal meeting of experts on 3/4 November 1982 in Luxembourg, in order to discuss the issues relevant to the relation ship between patent protection and innovation and to identify suitable subject matter for action or study. 38 experts from nine Member States, coming from different areas of activity in industrial property or in innova tion attended the meeting, which was chaired by two of them.

Author : Oliver Gassmann
Publisher : Springer Nature
Page : 275 pages
File Size : 16,92 MB
Release : 2020-11-28
Category : Business & Economics
ISBN : 3030590097

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This book provides an overview of the common concepts and building blocks of patent management. It addresses executives in the areas of innovation, R & D, patent and intellectual property management as well as academics and students.The authors give valuable information on the characteristics of patent and intellectual property management, based on the collaboration with companies and organizations from Europe, China, Japan, Argentina, Brazil, India, Canada and the US. A reference for managers who want to bring information technology innovation with a clear intellectual property strategy to the market. A very readable book. Thomas Landolt, Managing Director, IBM A really comprehensive, all-in book about Patents – strategy, value, management and commercialization. And not forgetting what they are for – foster innovation. Dr. Joerg Thomaier, Head of IP Bayer Group

Author : National Research Council
Publisher : National Academies Press
Page : 186 pages
File Size : 44,14 MB
Release : 2004-10-01
Category : Science
ISBN : 0309089107

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The U.S. patent system is in an accelerating race with human ingenuity and investments in innovation. In many respects the system has responded with admirable flexibility, but the strain of continual technological change and the greater importance ascribed to patents in a knowledge economy are exposing weaknesses including questionable patent quality, rising transaction costs, impediments to the dissemination of information through patents, and international inconsistencies. A panel including a mix of legal expertise, economists, technologists, and university and corporate officials recommends significant changes in the way the patent system operates. A Patent System for the 21st Century urges creation of a mechanism for post-grant challenges to newly issued patents, reinvigoration of the non-obviousness standard to quality for a patent, strengthening of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, simplified and less costly litigation, harmonization of the U.S., European, and Japanese examination process, and protection of some research from patent infringement liability.

Author : Esteban Donoso
Publisher : Archway Publishing
Page : 213 pages
File Size : 11,74 MB
Release : 2014-04
Category : Business & Economics
ISBN : 1480804150

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Is the current global legal system for patents really universal, fair, and effective? Author Esteban Donoso addresses this question in A Global Solution for the Protection of Inventions. Sharing the results of an extensive study, Donoso analyzes the legal nature of intellectual property, industrial property, and patents and reviews the evolution and background of the current global legal scenario of the protection of inventions. The study also identifies the main flaws, strengths, and virtues of the current system and examines the international instrument governing patents. Donoso then introduces a corrective action plan and addresses the compatibility of the proposal in regard to free trade, technology transfer, and the least possible market distortion. A Global Solution for the Protection of Inventions seeks to correct the deficiencies that exist in the current patent system by introducing a differentiated protection period granted by a patent according to the economic capacity of each country and demonstrates that this action is necessary to make the global agreement governing the system just and effective.

Author : Jonathan Barnett
Publisher :
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 15,47 MB
Release : 2015
Category :
ISBN :

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Conventional academic, policy, and judicial discussions of patent protection assume that patents solve a classic public goods or market underinvestment problem. This assumption states that, without patents, potential innovators would expect to have no or highly limited means of preventing unauthorized third-party imitation and consequently, would have few incentives to develop innovations. I challenge this assumption both as a positive description of patent practice and as a normative basis for patent policy. As a descriptive matter, I show that a large body of empirical evidence strongly suggests that, with the exception of a few industries, firms often have legal and extra-legal means other than patents by which to appropriate the proceeds of their innovations and that patents tend to be the least effective means of doing so. In particular, firms that establish a dominant market position are generally able to appropriate significant innovation proceeds through various business strategies collectively referred to as the first-mover advantage: superior cost efficiencies, production methods, distribution and marketing networks, and brand image that are difficult for rivals to replicate. This finding has important and surprising normative implications. Whereas the conventional view states that patents cure an underinvestment problem in the market generally, I argue that patents cure an underinvestment problem among entrants (and especially small-firm entrants) in particular. For these firms, the patent system offers significant marginal exclusionary value to the extent that most informal and non-patent means of protecting patentable innovations (in particular, the various elements of the first-mover advantage) are by definition far more accessible to larger, established incumbents than to smaller entrants. Insofar as patents mitigate incumbents' natural appropriability advantage relative to entrants, they counterintuitively weaken rather than strengthen entry barriers and, in doing so, stimulate innovation investment by smaller firms that are often the principal sources of the most fundamental technological advances. This market-entry thesis is reconcilable with extensive patenting by large-firm incumbents insofar as a significant percentage of such large-firm patenting facilitates the incumbent's entry either into other concentrated markets or into knowledge exchanges and other joint ventures with competitors, in each case promoting technological advance and informational dissemination. This thesis also has significant implications for patent policy insofar as it cautions against introducing or expanding patent protection in markets where informal methods of appropriating innovation proceeds are widely available and, in particular, where such informal methods are available to a similar extent to both incumbents and entrants.

Author : Adam B. Jaffe
Publisher : Princeton University Press
Page : 253 pages
File Size : 10,44 MB
Release : 2011-05-27
Category : Business & Economics
ISBN : 1400837340

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The United States patent system has become sand rather than lubricant in the wheels of American progress. Such is the premise behind this provocative and timely book by two of the nation's leading experts on patents and economic innovation. Innovation and Its Discontents tells the story of how recent changes in patenting--an institutional process that was created to nurture innovation--have wreaked havoc on innovators, businesses, and economic productivity. Jaffe and Lerner, who have spent the past two decades studying the patent system, show how legal changes initiated in the 1980s converted the system from a stimulator of innovation to a creator of litigation and uncertainty that threatens the innovation process itself. In one telling vignette, Jaffe and Lerner cite a patent litigation campaign brought by a a semi-conductor chip designer that claims control of an entire category of computer memory chips. The firm's claims are based on a modest 15-year old invention, whose scope and influenced were broadened by secretly manipulating an industry-wide cooperative standard-setting body. Such cases are largely the result of two changes in the patent climate, Jaffe and Lerner contend. First, new laws have made it easier for businesses and inventors to secure patents on products of all kinds, and second, the laws have tilted the table to favor patent holders, no matter how tenuous their claims. After analyzing the economic incentives created by the current policies, Jaffe and Lerner suggest a three-pronged solution for restoring the patent system: create incentives to motivate parties who have information about the novelty of a patent; provide multiple levels of patent review; and replace juries with judges and special masters to preside over certain aspects of infringement cases. Well-argued and engagingly written, Innovation and Its Discontents offers a fresh approach for enhancing both the nation's creativity and its economic growth.