Politicians have the incentive to take the shorter-run view that patents restrict growth and innovation because of terms, writes CharlesSauer. 'Regardless, history is clear. Patents are good for America and good for its people.'
Patents, however, are also constantly under attack. Patents are labeled by people that would like to use them as impediments. In fact, whole studies have been produced by think tanks quantifying these costs. At the same time, these same studies have ignored the benefits of patents. Given that Tuesday isThomas Jefferson had some reservations about patents because they gave the inventor a monopoly — even for a limited time.
As a legal document, patents are complex. As public policy, the language feels arcane and dense. But despite all of these obstacles, the incentives that patents give our nation’s innovators and inventors have built ourinto something that is likely beyond even Jefferson’s ideal. Patents encourage inventors to invest their hard-earned money into an idea. Patents are what give inventors the assurance that if they invent the next big thing — then that thing is theirs to profit from.
Of course, patents don’t guarantee wealth either. Jefferson also mentions that"many are indeed trifling." But the government's job isn't to pick winners and losers — rather, it is to offer a chance for winners. Sadly, when someone owns a patent for the next big thing, others can become jealous. Patents can be one of the most frustrating public policies for politicians, for example. If political terms lasted more than 20 years, then politicians might be able to take the long view. But political terms are two years, four years, or six years. Politicians thus have the incentive to take the shorter-run view that patents restrict growth and innovation.
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