Close
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Home Development
    • Development

    Panelists Grapple With IP

    By
    Darryl K. Taft
    -
    May 2, 2005
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      The question of whether intellectual property protection promotes or inhibits innovation is complex, but the answer was nearly unanimous from panelists at the Association for Competitive Technologys Intellectual Property & Technology Summit here last week.

      “Defining innovation broadly, I think IP is in support of development,” said Keith Maskus, an economics professor at the University of Colorado, in Boulder.

      “I believe IP does promote innovation. Where it doesnt is where the system breaks down,” said Dana Colarulli, government relations and legislative counsel for the Washington-based Intellectual Property Owners Association.

      Melanie Wyne, director of public policy at the Computing Technology Industry Association, in Oakbrook Terrace, Ill., said that having worked for a software startup, she knows the value of patents. “The second question venture capitalists ask you after Whats your software do? is How many patents do you have?” Wyne said.

      Despite the seemingly united front presented by many industry leaders, the idea of IP patents is anathema to many others.

      “Im here to represent the attitudes of many, many, many people around the world who think that for the software industry, patents are not the creative engine, they are the caboose,” said Larry Rosen, former general counsel for the San Francisco-based Open Source Initiative and a leading open-source supporter.

      Rosen pointed to the open-source communitys relationship with industry standards bodies such as the World Wide Web Consortium and the Organization for the Advancement of Structured Information Standards and the petition several open-source leaders sent to OASIS objecting to the organizations latest IP policy.

      “Were saying if you want to work together on software standards, then you need to make those standards available to the public,” Rosen said.

      According to Rosen, patents typically come long after the fact and “serve as a disincentive rather than an incentive” to innovation.

      Rosen noted that IBM, a leading OASIS contributor, recently stated it was going to make its OASIS-related patents royalty-free.

      “Well, that shows that patents are not detrimental,” CompTIAs Wyne said. “IBM had a smart business reason to make that change.”

      Rosen replied, “I respectfully disagree.” The bigger companies are the ones that can afford to fight legal battles regarding IP, Rosen said.

      However, speaking at the recent Linux on Wall Street conference in New York, Karen Copenhaver, executive vice president and general counsel at Black Duck Software Inc., in Waltham, Mass., raised the issue of the open-source community rising up to defend itself legally.

      “Most companies had never given a software indemnity before, and the reason why they shouldnt for open source is that it was built in the community, and I believe the community needs to defend it,” Copenhaver said.

      IP and innovation

      • CompTIA Supports strong IP protection and patents for software
      • Intellectual Property Owners Association Says IP promotes innovation and supports patent protection for software
      • Larry Rosen, open-source legal expert Says he believes patents of software should be eliminated
      • Keith Maskus, economics professor, University of Colorado Says IP promotes innovation
      Darryl K. Taft
      Darryl K. Taft covers the development tools and developer-related issues beat from his office in Baltimore. He has more than 10 years of experience in the business and is always looking for the next scoop. Taft is a member of the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and was named 'one of the most active middleware reporters in the world' by The Middleware Co. He also has his own card in the 'Who's Who in Enterprise Java' deck.

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Big Data and Analytics

      Alteryx’s Suresh Vittal on the Democratization of...

      James Maguire - May 31, 2022 0
      I spoke with Suresh Vittal, Chief Product Officer at Alteryx, about the industry mega-shift toward making data analytics tools accessible to a company’s complete...
      Read more
      Cybersecurity

      Visa’s Michael Jabbara on Cybersecurity and Digital...

      James Maguire - May 17, 2022 0
      I spoke with Michael Jabbara, VP and Global Head of Fraud Services at Visa, about the cybersecurity technology used to ensure the safe transfer...
      Read more
      Cloud

      IGEL CEO Jed Ayres on Edge and...

      James Maguire - June 14, 2022 0
      I spoke with Jed Ayres, CEO of IGEL, about the endpoint sector, and an open source OS for the cloud; we also spoke about...
      Read more
      Applications

      Cisco’s Thimaya Subaiya on Customer Experience in...

      James Maguire - May 10, 2022 0
      I spoke with Thimaya Subaiya, SVP and GM of Global Customer Experience at Cisco, about the factors that create good customer experience – and...
      Read more
      Big Data and Analytics

      GoodData CEO Roman Stanek on Business Intelligence...

      James Maguire - May 4, 2022 0
      I spoke with Roman Stanek, CEO of GoodData, about business intelligence, data as a service, and the frustration that many executives have with data...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2022 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.

      ×