Comments on: Music Patents http://techliberation.com/2007/12/24/music-patents/ Keeping politicians' hands off the Net & everything else related to technology Tue, 14 Feb 2012 12:51:08 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 By: Gary McGath http://techliberation.com/2007/12/24/music-patents/comment-page-1/#comment-40245 Gary McGath Tue, 25 Dec 2007 15:33:41 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2007/12/24/music-patents/#comment-40245 <p>Licensing twelve-bar blues is a really conservative analogy. If there were music patents comparable to software patents, there would be patents on polyrhythms, grace notes, and sonata form.</p> <p>Or if we restricted ourselves to innovations since the start of the 20th century, there would be patents on 12-tone series, random selection of radio stations, and the employment of car horns as instruments, and nobody but their creators could use those techniques without a license.</p> <p>Er, wait, that's starting to sound like a benefit from patents...</p> Licensing twelve-bar blues is a really conservative analogy. If there were music patents comparable to software patents, there would be patents on polyrhythms, grace notes, and sonata form.

Or if we restricted ourselves to innovations since the start of the 20th century, there would be patents on 12-tone series, random selection of radio stations, and the employment of car horns as instruments, and nobody but their creators could use those techniques without a license.

Er, wait, that’s starting to sound like a benefit from patents…

]]> By: Gary McGath http://techliberation.com/2007/12/24/music-patents/comment-page-1/#comment-54500 Gary McGath Tue, 25 Dec 2007 15:33:41 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2007/12/24/music-patents/#comment-54500 <p>Licensing twelve-bar blues is a really conservative analogy. If there were music patents comparable to software patents, there would be patents on polyrhythms, grace notes, and sonata form.<br><br>Or if we restricted ourselves to innovations since the start of the 20th century, there would be patents on 12-tone series, random selection of radio stations, and the employment of car horns as instruments, and nobody but their creators could use those techniques without a license.<br><br>Er, wait, that's starting to sound like a benefit from patents...</p> Licensing twelve-bar blues is a really conservative analogy. If there were music patents comparable to software patents, there would be patents on polyrhythms, grace notes, and sonata form.

Or if we restricted ourselves to innovations since the start of the 20th century, there would be patents on 12-tone series, random selection of radio stations, and the employment of car horns as instruments, and nobody but their creators could use those techniques without a license.

Er, wait, that’s starting to sound like a benefit from patents…

]]> By: Timon http://techliberation.com/2007/12/24/music-patents/comment-page-1/#comment-40244 Timon Tue, 25 Dec 2007 09:50:02 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2007/12/24/music-patents/#comment-40244 <p>Or maybe somebody <a href='http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/2005/03/trial_lawyers_b.html' rel="nofollow">successfully patenting the concept of a mock jury</a>. Naturally, the only time I've seen or read a patent attorney wring his hands at the system was in reference to that kind of patent, which are much more valid, historically and philosophically, than software patents. (Discoveries of naturally occurring facts, such as new math or new atoms, are historically excluded, while complex novel commercial processes have always been included.) And the mock jury patent is about as likely to be respected.</p> Or maybe somebody successfully patenting the concept of a mock jury. Naturally, the only time I’ve seen or read a patent attorney wring his hands at the system was in reference to that kind of patent, which are much more valid, historically and philosophically, than software patents. (Discoveries of naturally occurring facts, such as new math or new atoms, are historically excluded, while complex novel commercial processes have always been included.) And the mock jury patent is about as likely to be respected.

]]> By: Timon http://techliberation.com/2007/12/24/music-patents/comment-page-1/#comment-54499 Timon Tue, 25 Dec 2007 09:50:02 +0000 http://techliberation.com/2007/12/24/music-patents/#comment-54499 <p>Or maybe somebody <a href="http://www.patentlyo.com/patent/2005/03/trial_lawyers_b.html" rel="nofollow">successfully patenting the concept of a mock jury</a>. Naturally, the only time I've seen or read a patent attorney wring his hands at the system was in reference to that kind of patent, which are much more valid, historically and philosophically, than software patents. (Discoveries of naturally occurring facts, such as new math or new atoms, are historically excluded, while complex novel commercial processes have always been included.) And the mock jury patent is about as likely to be respected.</p> Or maybe somebody successfully patenting the concept of a mock jury. Naturally, the only time I’ve seen or read a patent attorney wring his hands at the system was in reference to that kind of patent, which are much more valid, historically and philosophically, than software patents. (Discoveries of naturally occurring facts, such as new math or new atoms, are historically excluded, while complex novel commercial processes have always been included.) And the mock jury patent is about as likely to be respected.

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