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A new report from an analyst at Chetan Sharma
Consulting predicts that one fourth of all patents granted this year will be
mobile related with Samsung and IBM leading the way. Many observers believe
that the increasing volume in patent applications is a sign that the global
mobile patent war is just beginning. The number of mobile related patents granted
by the USPTO and the European Patent Office increased significantly over the
past decade; the US market saw a 591 percent increase
while the European market experienced a 76 percent increase in mobile related
patent grants. Authors of the report stipulate that the increasing numbers in mobile patents is not surprising since smartphones and tablets have become the center of the knowledge economy. These products give companies a lot more incentive to patent innovations both to maximize their returns on R&D and to prevent potential suits from patent trolls, among other reasons.
With all these statistics about increasing filing rates and patent grants, we must ask what it all means? While it may be a good sign that the mobile industry is alive and well, it may also be a bad sign. Perhaps many of the patents this year were ill conceived, overly broad, or simply stupid. We've talked a lot about how the patent system is broken and needs reform; an increase in patent volume cannot make matters any better before real change can influence the patent system. For many people, the fact that our patent system is alive and well is precisely the problem.
Great post! The questions you bring up are important and something that will dictate how patents are perceived in the future, whether they are even considered relevant due to the large volume of patents everywhere.
ReplyDeleteGreat point. I wonder if there are ways to reduce the volume of useless patents to make way for the important ones. But then again, how can you have a screening process for innovation when it's hard to know what will be successful in the marketplace?
ReplyDeleteIt is really fascinating the rate at which mobile patents are growing. Do you think that is indicative of market growth vertically or horizontally? I feel like a lot of companies are patenting everything and anything relative to their products, creating a lot of headway for various types of patents within the mobile space.
ReplyDeleteI think that the increase in the number of mobile phone-related patents could be a bad thing, depending on what the smartphone war in the future looks like. I think all of the lawsuits are pretty pointless and waste the time of both parties involved, not to mention the resources of the judicial system.
ReplyDeleteI believe that the growing number of mobile-related patents, while signalling growth and innovation in the industry, does not necessarily signal an increase in overall quality of phones. I feel that a large number of mobile-related patents may have been filed by patent trolls looking to take advantage of the increasing revenues of mobile manufacturing companies, who may be willing to settle or pay licenses for millions of dollars in the face of IP suits.
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