Patent Wars

Patents are ubiquitous in contemporary life. Practically everything we use incorporates one or more patented inventions, and recent years have witnessed epic disputes over such matters as the patenting of human genes, the control of smartphone design and technology, the marketing of patented drugs, and the conduct of "patent trolls" accused of generating revenue from nuisance litigation. But what exactly is a patent? Why do governments grant them? Can patents simultaneously encourage new invention, while limiting monopoly and other abuses? In Patent Wars, Thomas Cotter, one of America's leading patent law scholars, offers an accessible, lively, and up-to-date examination of the current state of patent law, showing how patents affect everything from the food we eat to the cars we drive to the devices that entertain and inform us. Beginning with a general overview of patent law and litigation, the book addresses such issues as the patentability of genes, medical procedures, software, and business methods; the impact of drug patents and international treaties on the price of health care; trolls; and the smartphone wars. Taking into account both the benefits and costs that patents impose on society, Cotter highlights the key issues in current debates and explores what still remains unknown about the effect of patents on innovation. An essential one-volume analysis of the topic, Patent Wars explains why patent laws exist in the first place and how we can make the system better.

From the "Diaper Wars" that pitted Procter & Gamble against Kimberly-Clark to disputes over high-temperature superconductors, veteran technology writer Fred Warshofsky tracks patent litigation's path to becoming one of the most potent financial tools of the 1990s. The stakes are enormous. For example, Honeywell Inc. more than doubled its net income for the third quarter of 1992 despite lower operating revenue by winning some dozen patent infringement suits against Japanese camera makers, including a tidy $96 billion from Minolta. Japanese companies frequently win. In a revealing analysis of the patent wars in Japan, Warshofsky shows how Japanese industries surround basic patents with clusters of patent modifications. In the global winner-take-all battle, this strategy gives them effective control over the licensing and usefulness of the original invention. The patent game becomes more complicated with the development of each new product and technology. Nowhere is the phenomenon more evident than in software, semiconductors, and biotechnology. Warshofsky delves into each of these highly sophisticated industries. In the software industry, for instance, Warshofsky dissects patent battles such as Apple v. Microsoft and Borland v. Lotus that have made front-page headlines. The Patent Wars is the first book to take an incisive look at this new business offensive and its consequences, including hackers and piracy in cyberspace. As more and more companies deliberately strive to prohibit competition and innovation, this stimulating and highly informative book will become essential reading for people in business and finance, technology-watchers, and policymakers.

India and the Patent Wars contributes to an international debate over the costs of medicine and restrictions on access under stringent patent laws showing how activists and drug companies in low-income countries seize agency and exert influence over these processes. Murphy Halliburton contributes to analyses of globalization within the fields of anthropology, sociology, law, and public health by drawing on interviews and ethnographic work with pharmaceutical producers in India and the United States. India has been at the center of emerging controversies around patent rights related to pharmaceutical production and local medical knowledge. Halliburton shows that Big Pharma is not all-powerful, and that local activists and practitioners of ayurveda, India’s largest indigenous medical system, have been able to undermine the aspirations of multinational companies and the WTO. Halliburton traces how key drug prices have gone down, not up, in low-income countries under the new patent regime through partnerships between US- and India-based companies, but warns us to be aware of access to essential medicines in low- and middle-income countries going forward.

Patents are ubiquitous in contemporary life. Practically everything we use incorporates one or more patented inventions, and recent years have witnessed epic disputes over such matters as the patenting of human genes, the control of smartphone design and technology, the marketing of patented drugs, and the conduct of "patent trolls" accused of generating revenue from nuisance litigation. But what exactly is a patent? Why do governments grant them? Can patents simultaneously encourage new invention, while limiting monopoly and other abuses? In Patent Wars, Thomas Cotter, one of America's leading patent law scholars, offers an accessible, lively, and up-to-date examination of the current state of patent law, showing how patents affect everything from the food we eat to the cars we drive to the devices that entertain and inform us. Beginning with a general overview of patent law and litigation, the book addresses such issues as the patentability of genes, medical procedures, software, and business methods; the impact of drug patents and international treaties on the price of health care; trolls; and the smartphone wars. Taking into account both the benefits and costs that patents impose on society, Cotter highlights the key issues in current debates and explores what still remains unknown about the effect of patents on innovation. An essential one-volume analysis of the topic, Patent Wars explains why patent laws exist in the first place and how we can make the system better.

The 2nd Edition of Who Owns You, David Koepsell’s widely acclaimed exploration of the philosophical and legal problems of patenting human genes, is updated to reflect the most recent changes to the cultural and legal climate relating to the practice of gene patenting. Lays bare the theoretical assumptions that underpin the injustice of patents on unmodified genes Makes a unique argument for a commons-by-necessity, explaining how parts of the universe are simply not susceptible to monopoly claims Represents the only work that attempts to first define the nature of the genetic objects involved before any ethical conclusions are reached Provides the most comprehensive accounting of the various lawsuits, legislative changes, and the public debate surrounding AMP v. Myriad, the most significant case regarding gene patents

Introduction -- Defining the public interest in the US and European patent systems -- Confronting the questions of life-form patentability -- Commodification, animal dignity, and patent-system publics -- Forging new patent politics through the human embryonic stem cell debates -- Human genes, plants, and the distributive implications of patents -- Conclusion

Although the U.S. Patent System has been essential to spurring innovation, it has wavered in its efficiency and effectiveness at doing so. This research first makes historical comparison and analysis of the Apple and Wright landmark patent war cases to illustrate that, irrespective of timing, benefits of a patent system rest heavily on how well it defines and maintains "patent quality." Much of the challenge in maintaining such quality relates to the subjective and often uncertain nature of invention criteria such as "non-obviousness." As shown by recent trends, decreased patent quality leads to greater uncertainty about patent validity, which in turn invites more litigation. This work proposes that, in order to improve constancy on patent quality, the U.S. patent office should consider returning to original strategies envisioned by the Founders of the United States as described by a patent-registration system that emphasizes utility and public review in governing the patent granting process. Modern information technology can now be applied to effectively restore this original framework envisioned for patent quality control systems.

The fascinating true story of Gordon Gould's successful thirty-year struggle to assert himself as the rightful inventor of the laser -- and a myth-shattering, behind-the-scenes account of the American patent process.The insight struck Gould with the force of revelation. He sat bolt upright in bed, marveling at its perfection. Soon he was at his desk, writing at the top of a page in his laboratory notebook, "Some rough calculations on the feasibility of a "Laser": Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation."So began the invention of the laser in 1957, a machine that changed industry, medicine and science, and much of modern life. Gordon Gould was a graduate student with a checkered past and a yen to invent, but he had a blind spot when it came to patent rights. And when a respected professor with an office next to Gould's electrified the scientific world with his own claims on the laser, Gould was in for the fight of a lifetime.For the next thirty years, Gould battled the U.S. Patent Office and manufacturers to enforce his rights as the laser's inventor. Rebuffed, he was even denied security clearance to work on his own in