tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6618880.post3069049524002145085..comments2024-03-27T00:26:31.343-07:00Comments on The Commercial Space Blog: Is the US Patent System Broken?Chuck Blackhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09506476753520146858noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6618880.post-74630008623099588982015-01-06T12:59:48.621-08:002015-01-06T12:59:48.621-08:00Yes, all confusing and not fair to the little inve...Yes, all confusing and not fair to the little inventors. However, Blue Origin would still have no luck in Canada. The 1998 paper is not just of value due to the "first to invent" issue, but also "prior art". Even in Canada, to be eligible for patenting, it must show novelty: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canadian_patent_law#Novelty<br /><br />Specifically, "if a third party document or device previously publicly disclosed the invention anywhere in the world, then a subsequently applied-for Canadian patent application for that invention is lacking in novelty and is invalid."<br /><br />The difference between "first to invent" and "first to file" only shows up when a prior inventor kept it a secret. Arguably this makes sense since the "first to invent" system creates a potential hazard in which you invented something, did due diligence work to see if anybody developed it prior, and only when you later get sued can you find out that somebody did but kept it secret. Not very fair to you. <br /><br />Also, the value of the patent system to the public (when there is one) is to reveal the technology publicly, and the tradeoff is a temporary monopoly on the technology. A "first to invent" system allows you to avoid patenting but still have the effective monopoly because if anybody else tries to built it (or patent it) you can then patent it or challenge theirs. "First to file" does the tradeoff better; if you don't patent and keep it a secret, somebody else can invent it (or reverse engineer yours) and then file, blocking you out. You can stop them by publishing how it works freely, thus providing prior art so nobody can patent it. Or you can patent, which makes it public, but with the limited monopoly for you. Hence it makes secrets riskier instead of safe, thus benefiting the public more by revealing the technology one way or another.<br />Chadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15486630706498864320noreply@blogger.com