I am interested to find out what people think about this seldom discussed topic. On occasion a brilliant invention comes along that threatens certain industries or the establishment. Should it be illegal for these companies to purchase a patent simply to keep it from ever going to production? The reason i ask is because we live in a profit motive world. If an invention came along that betters our way of life, but can not be exploited effectively for profit; that idea may never see the light...
Read more …I am interested to find out what people think about this seldom discussed topic. On occasion a brilliant invention comes along that threatens certain industries or the establishment. Should it be illegal for these companies to purchase a patent simply to keep it from ever going to production? The reason i ask is because we live in a profit motive world. If an invention came along that betters our way of life, but can not be exploited effectively for profit; that idea may never see the light of day. Especially if it is deemed a threat to current profits in certain industries.
Now my question does not mean it should be illegal for a company to purchase a patent. It simply means that should it be illegal to purchase the rights to a patent without producing it? After all, we are talking about profit v.s. technological advances that could improve our way of life.
