[Patents] MIT economic report prooves devastating effects of software patents

[Jean-Paul Smets jp@smets.com]

(just in case you did not read this major new found by St=E9fane Fermigie=
r)

This article is written by two researcher from MIT and concludes, after g=
iving
mathematical models and experimental evidence, that in a dynamic world su=
ch
as the software industry or consulting industry, firms may have plenty of=

incentive to innovate without patents and patents may constrict complemen=
tary
innovation. It concludes that copyright protection for software programs =
(which
has gone through its own evolution over the last decade) may have achieve=
d a
better balance than patent protection. This new model suggests another,
different
rationale for narrow patent breadth than the recent economic literature o=
n this
subject. =


http://www.researchoninnovation.org/patent.pdf

This article also confirms some of the economic conclusions introduced in=

"Software Useright"
(such as the possibility to solve inconsistencies in patents through "sof=
t
property")
http://www.smets.com/it/policy/useright/useright.pdf