[Patents] gouvernement 'buy up' patents or copyright

[Kristoff Bonne kristoff@mccb.be.eu.org]

Greetings,

Just a thought:
In the 'old economy', society (usually the national states) has the right
to 'buy up' property (land) of individuals if it serves 'the greater good'
(e.g. to build a railway track).
This is a generally excepted principle.

So, why not extend this principle to the 'knowledge economy' and give the
gouvernement (at national and/or European level) the right to 'buy out'
certain patents or copyrights (at cost-price) to release it to 'the
public', if it serves the public good. (e.g. things concerning security
-like encryption principle or software-, or where the existence of patents
stops further research in a certain domain, ...).

But, I guess this is not a very new idea and that other people have
already thought of this, but shouldn't this become a general
excepted principle too.

Just my 2 eurocents of thoughts.


Cheerio! Kr. Bonne.

*** catch-frase of the week:
The only remedy against too-strong multinationals, are equally strong
governements and under equally strong democratic control.
***