you can lose the patent if you refuse to license or use it (?)

Posted Sep 5, 2002 12:40 UTC (Thu) by tres (guest, #352)
In reply to: you can lose the patent if you refuse to license or use it (?) by stevenj
Parent article: A different use of software patents

First: GO LUCKY!!!!!!!

Second: I hate to site a source of entertainment but I once saw a Steven Segall Movie, On Deadly Ground, that had a short section at the end of it that discussed things like tires that could last for 1,000 miles, radial automobile engines that could get 70 miles to the gallon, and many other patented things that were controlled by mega-corps (usually the oil industry) for the purpose of preventing them from entering the market. These statements are from memory only so I may be wrong on the details. It seems that either you are in error, or some Mega-corps are blatantly disregarding the law. Perhaps no one has chosen to challenge their patents for fear that their pockets aren't deep enough

Regards,
Tres

you can lose the patent if you refuse to license or use it (?)

Posted Sep 5, 2002 16:44 UTC (Thu) by ZogKarndon (guest, #3566) [Link]

Uh - all those things are urban legends. Patents expire. The whole point of the patent system is to publicize inventions; in order to get a patent, you have to describe exactly how to create your object. If you had a million-mile tire (if I had a tire that only lasted 1000 miles, I'd be pissed as hell - any decent tire lasts at least 25,000 miles, and should last 50,000), if you were to patent it, you would have to describe how to make one. Then, in 17 years, anyone could make it. If those devices existed, they would be on the market, since these things have been rumored to exist for well over 50 years.