Economist: Patently Obvious Since 1572
by James Gattuso on May 4, 2007
Good article in this week’s Economist on last week’s Supreme Court decisions on patent law. The magazine compares the KSR decision to a decision by the Privy Council 435 years ago:
“In 1572 the Privy Council of Elizabeth I, the queen of England, refused to grant patent protection to new knives with bone handles because the improvement was marginal. It is only natural that things progress, the council reasoned; minor ameliorations do not cut it. This week America’s Supreme Court decided likewise.”
That’s what I call historical perspective. Worth reading.
James Gattuso / James Gattuso is a Senior Research Fellow in Regulatory Policy in the Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies at The Heritage Foundation. Gattuso also leads the Enterprise and Free Markets Initiative at Heritage, with responsiblity for a range of regulatory and market issues. Prior to joining Heritage, he served as Vice President for Policy at the Competitive Enterprise Institute and also as Vice President for Policy Development with Citizens for a Sound Economy (CSE). From 1990 to 1993, he was Deputy Chief of the Office of Plans and Policy at the Federal Communications Commission. From May 1991 to June 1992, he was detailed from the FCC to the office of Vice President Dan Quayle, where he served as Associate Director of the President's Council on Competitiveness. He lives in Alexandria, Virginia with his wife Dana, 8 year-old son, Peter (whom he relies upon to operate his VCR), and his four year-old daughter Lindsey (who does the DVD player.) He has no known hobbies, but is not nearly as boring as he seems.
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