Of course patents kill innovation and the reasons are very simple and known to many.
It doesn't matter what the law says. It doesn't matter if the patent is generic or very specific. It doesn't matter if it covers a currently trendy area.
None of these things matter one bit.
Only one thing truly matters: how much budget for a lawyer does the suing side have.
That's it. Only that. A talented and highly-paid (and thus motivated) copyright / patent lawyer is literally the most dangerous adversary you will ever encounter in your civilized life (we're not including stuff like Mexican cartel hating you, of course).
It doesn't even matter what legislation grounds for suing you does the litigating side have. If they have a square inch, they'll use it and expand it to be as big as the USA.
A lot of small businesses are well-aware of the power imbalance and I've heard founders give up on ideas, citing various copyright / patent trials from the last 10+ years.
Truth is, if a big player comes after you and if the government doesn't help you have some semblance of a fighting chance (by covering your legal expenses and/or hiring a competent defender for you) then the 99.9% predictable result is: you'll run out of money and will be forced to settle if you are lucky -- and in most other cases you'll have to pay damages or royalties for years, which might very easily make a homeless person out of you.
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I am glad that the US patent office is making an inquiry but at the same time slightly disappointed because what I just said above is common knowledge in many circles.
It doesn't matter what the law says. It doesn't matter if the patent is generic or very specific. It doesn't matter if it covers a currently trendy area.
None of these things matter one bit.
Only one thing truly matters: how much budget for a lawyer does the suing side have.
That's it. Only that. A talented and highly-paid (and thus motivated) copyright / patent lawyer is literally the most dangerous adversary you will ever encounter in your civilized life (we're not including stuff like Mexican cartel hating you, of course).
It doesn't even matter what legislation grounds for suing you does the litigating side have. If they have a square inch, they'll use it and expand it to be as big as the USA.
A lot of small businesses are well-aware of the power imbalance and I've heard founders give up on ideas, citing various copyright / patent trials from the last 10+ years.
Truth is, if a big player comes after you and if the government doesn't help you have some semblance of a fighting chance (by covering your legal expenses and/or hiring a competent defender for you) then the 99.9% predictable result is: you'll run out of money and will be forced to settle if you are lucky -- and in most other cases you'll have to pay damages or royalties for years, which might very easily make a homeless person out of you.
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I am glad that the US patent office is making an inquiry but at the same time slightly disappointed because what I just said above is common knowledge in many circles.