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Technology Stocks : The *NEW* Frank Coluccio Technology Forum
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To: waitwatchwander who wrote (20476)3/28/2007 9:56:09 AM
From: ftth  Read Replies (1) of 46821
 
Interesting. From the linked post, "This reality at least drives a universally shared impulse to improve the quality of patents when the first emerge from the PTO."

Certainly some truth to that, but the problem would seem to be that no one cares to spend the resources to shoot down a granted patent that perhaps was weak on the novelty and non-obviousness requirements, UNTIL it has had some material financial impact in the marketplace to justify a monetary judgment.

Opening the field of just-granted patents to public scrutiny does make some sense, in principle anyway. It's entirely possible the patent examiner missed something or misjudged novelty and/or obviousness.

But the downside is that the patent process then becomes just like lobbying proposed legislation: you get vested interests spin-doctoring some obscure opposition because they see a potential threat if the patent is granted.

That opposition then has to be neutered, and no matter how wrong the opposition may be, that can itself take a very long time since the person making the ultimate decision then has to determine beyond any shadow of a doubt that the opposition--which often would delve into arcane jumbles of semi-facts--is not legitimate.

It would probably bring into existence a new profession: Professional Patent Lobbyists, who spend their life opposing every granted patent by coming up with these arcane jumbles of semi-facts. You'd have an overwhelming majority opposing granted patents, and probably only the patent holder supporting it.

Would it really be a step forward in the end? Hard to say, but it's certainly worth looking in to ways to overhaul a very old system.
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