5 ms·

I'm studying in Germany abroad and i have a u.s. green card. After reading so much crap about u.s. patent system, i'm really considering staying in Germany or i

by devmach 14y ago

I'm studying in Germany abroad and i have a u.s. green card. After reading so much crap about u.s. patent system, i'm really considering staying in Germany or immigrate to another country ( like Singapore ?? ) and start a business there. I know, one person doesn't make a difference furthermore i'm not a "very important super mega top ninja hipster talented programmer" and every county has it's own problems. The thing is, i really don't like the idea that, my company can go to bankruptcy because law doesn't protect me and i have to live with fear and try to stay out of some patent troll's radar.

beering 14y ago
Singapore is where Uniloc, this patent troll, is incorporated. Just an interesting bit of trivia.
- deleted 14y ago
  [deleted]
emmelaich 14y ago
I believe German trademark law has been (ab)used, too, so don't think you're completely safe.
- devmach 14y ago
  I'm aware that i'm not completely safe but from my perspective it looks like, if the situation affecting the economy , Europeans will react and do something about it. Patent trolling is a problem in U.S. since a long time but nobody want's to fix it. Politicians seems doesn't care, big corporations simply pay fees and reflect them to their customers or like in this case, companies let patent trolls screw their suppliers / business partners. Entrepreneurs & companies spending billions[0] for nothing, current patent system ironically hinders innovation, which is clearly bad for the economy and the country, everybody complains but nothing changes. I'm really having a hard time understanding why is this happening [1] [0] : http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/06/study-patent-trolls-cost-companies-29-billion-last-year/259070/ http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/06/study-... [1] : Just to clarify, i'm not saying country a is better than country b. I'm just really trying to understand.
  - simonh 14y ago
    Concur. It's not just that the legal regimen in the USA is much worse that elsewhere (though there's a credible case that it is). It's that the way the legal and political systems are locked together in a death grip that makes meaningful reform seem very unlikely. The legal and political systems in Europe aren't ideal by any means, but for example we've been able to stave off the worst excesses of the software patent lobby fairly successfully. It's possible the SOPA protests and the furore over the treatment of Aaron Swartz will make a difference and the US can turn a corner on these issues after all. We can hope so. I've worked at two companies now where there were graphical methods of displaying data that previously existed on paper, but we could not implement them in software because they were patented in the USA. One was in celular radio network planning and something to do with interference calculation, the other was in displaying a 'ladder' of bids and offers in financial trading systems. You could use these methods to display data on printed paper, or in a PDF on a screen for example, but if you generate the results in software and you're breaking the law in the US. Insane. But it's not practical to have one version for inside the US and another for the rest of the world.
  - L4mppu 14y ago
    Politicians won't care because corporations own them.
Kliment 14y ago
German patent law is super-evil too. As far as I understand it, patents are presumed valid for the duration of a patent suit, so you get hit with an injunction even if you countersue.

by devmach 14y ago

beering 14y ago

Singapore is where Uniloc, this patent troll, is incorporated. Just an interesting bit of trivia.

deleted 14y ago
[deleted]

emmelaich 14y ago

I believe German trademark law has been (ab)used, too, so don't think you're completely safe.

devmach 14y ago
I'm aware that i'm not completely safe but from my perspective it looks like, if the situation affecting the economy , Europeans will react and do something about it. Patent trolling is a problem in U.S. since a long time but nobody want's to fix it. Politicians seems doesn't care, big corporations simply pay fees and reflect them to their customers or like in this case, companies let patent trolls screw their suppliers / business partners. Entrepreneurs & companies spending billions[0] for nothing, current patent system ironically hinders innovation, which is clearly bad for the economy and the country, everybody complains but nothing changes. I'm really having a hard time understanding why is this happening [1] [0] : http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/06/study-patent-trolls-cost-companies-29-billion-last-year/259070/ http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2012/06/study-... [1] : Just to clarify, i'm not saying country a is better than country b. I'm just really trying to understand.
- simonh 14y ago
  Concur. It's not just that the legal regimen in the USA is much worse that elsewhere (though there's a credible case that it is). It's that the way the legal and political systems are locked together in a death grip that makes meaningful reform seem very unlikely. The legal and political systems in Europe aren't ideal by any means, but for example we've been able to stave off the worst excesses of the software patent lobby fairly successfully. It's possible the SOPA protests and the furore over the treatment of Aaron Swartz will make a difference and the US can turn a corner on these issues after all. We can hope so. I've worked at two companies now where there were graphical methods of displaying data that previously existed on paper, but we could not implement them in software because they were patented in the USA. One was in celular radio network planning and something to do with interference calculation, the other was in displaying a 'ladder' of bids and offers in financial trading systems. You could use these methods to display data on printed paper, or in a PDF on a screen for example, but if you generate the results in software and you're breaking the law in the US. Insane. But it's not practical to have one version for inside the US and another for the rest of the world.
- L4mppu 14y ago
  Politicians won't care because corporations own them.

Kliment 14y ago

German patent law is super-evil too. As far as I understand it, patents are presumed valid for the duration of a patent suit, so you get hit with an injunction even if you countersue.