[Patents] Companies moving to areas with favourable laws

[epa98@doc.ic.ac.uk (Edward Avis)]

On Tue, 8 May 2001 patents-request@liberte.aful.org wrote:

>From: Gregory Aharonian <srctran@world.std.com>
>Subject: Re: Re : [Patents] consultation questions

>Investors will adapt to whatever rules allow them to protect their
>investments, as do companies.  If you have rules that don't let them
>do so, they will take their investment monies to other countries.

Indeed.  If your country has laws which obstruct inventors and prevent
them from developing and marketing products, they will move to other
countries.  For example, SSH Corp. moved to Europe partly because of
patent hassles (and partly because of another obstructive legal system,
the US crypto export laws).

OTOH, it is still possible for companies in Europe or elsewhere to apply
for US software patents, which they can use to attack companies in the
US (or defend themselves if they are selling in the US).

-- 
Ed Avis
epa98@doc.ic.ac.uk