Some of you may have seen this already; it was batted around Twitter earlier today. The Economist published an article on businesses’ approach to intellectual property theft. Notably, the article discussed an interesting dilemma between patenting a product but watching foreign entities steal it and refusing to patent a product and . . . well . . . watching foreign entities steal it. The Economist article suggested an interesting approach:
America’s patent office is mulling whether to propose a new class of “economically sensitive” patents whose existence could be kept secret until a patent is granted (a process that typically takes over three years), to avoid giving thieves a head start. This is unlikely to satisfy businesses. Of more use, say some, would be amending the law to provide a federal right of civil action, allowing companies to pursue their own cases against spies. At the moment civil cases are subject to state law.
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