Growing up I have always wondered what the purpose of
patents was. I heard at least a couple horror stories where someone basically
stole the credit for an invention because they had the patent first but in reality someone
else had come up with the idea first. After reading an article by Daniel
McCurdy titled Patient Trolls Erode the Foundation of the US patent System, I have a better understanding of the purpose of patents. They help protect ideas so that those who come
up with them are encouraged to pursue them. As people come up with new ideas,
the economy is stimulated and grows. However, patent trolls are a real problem.
Patent trolls buy peoples patents and make money enforcing those
patents. They don't produce anything. This hurts innovation because it does the opposite of what patents are designed for. The problem is worsening as the article points out that the number of
patent lawsuits is on the rise. It will be interesting to see how this plays
out. My guess is that new laws will be put place or current laws will be
reworded to fight off this practice.
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