[Patents] Re: Technical effect

[Jesus M. Gonzalez-Barahona jgb@gsyc.escet.urjc.es]

Gregory Aharonian writes:
 > >They have so far failed to check whether software patents do promot=
e
 > >such progess [as inspired by the US constitution].  So has the EPO.=

 > >And so have you.
 >=20
 > You can make that claim about any mature technology - electronics,
 > biotech, pharmaceuticals.  To many biotech researchers in the US,
 > it is more important to get an NIH grant than to get a patent.
 > In fact, it is quite difficult to measure the economic impact of
 > patents, i.e., are patents inhibiting progress, and would the lack
 > of patents promote more progress.  Yes, I have failed to check
 > whether software patents promote progress because a) I am not sure
 > if one can create an detailed enough economic model to measure
 > such effects, and b) I do not have the funding to gather and
 > analyze the data if it were possible to do so.
 >=20
 > So while I won't argue that software patents promote progress becaus=
e
 > I don't have the data to argue so, I also don't have the data to
 > argue that software patents are hurting progress, and that there wou=
ld
 > be more progress if there were no software patents.  And no one else=

 > has such data to argue one way or the other, especially everyone on
 > this list.
 >=20
 > So hoping to fight off reform of 52c by arguing about progress is a
 > waste of time because there is no conclusive data to argue one way
 > or the other.
 > [...]

     You can see it the other way around. If it is at least unclear
that swpatents produce any possitive effect in the society as a whole,
in the economy of the IT sector, or in the advance of IT technology,
why should anybody even propose swpatents? The only ones with
guarantees of benefit seem to be lawyers...

     Instead of swpatents, I propose that anybody developing software
pays 1 euro/month to Jesus Gonz=E1lez-Barahona. There is no study
proving that this is of any help to anybody but Jesus, but there are
also no studies proving the contrary...

     Perhaps this argument si also valid for other kinds of patents,
but that is outside the topic of this list, and is something that does
not interest me currently.

     Saludos,

         Jesus.

--=20
Jesus M. Gonzalez Barahona                | Grupo de Sistemas y Comunic=
aciones
jgb@gsyc.escet.urjc.es / jgb@computer.org | ESCET, Universidad Rey Juan=
 Carlos=20
tel: +34 91 664 74 67                     | c/ Tulipan s/n
fax: +34 91 664 74 90                     | 28933 Mostoles, Spain