Most innovations are the result of a cumulative R&D process, i.e., their production requires the combination of knowledge contained in previous innovations (for a general presentation, see my previous ‘Dig It!’ post). Cumulative innovations raise specific problems that put the patent system under stress. We already explained on this blog that holdup strategies or licensing […]
Tag Archives | anticommons
Do patent rights facilitate or impede cumulative innovation?
By Paul Belleflamme 20 November 2014 33
The smartphone patent wars: nothing really surprising…
By Paul Belleflamme 28 November 2013 107
(This is an updated and slightly modified version of this post, published on April 25, 2012.) In April 2012, Lucy Koh, a US District Court Judge, tried to force a truce on one of the fiercest fronts of what is now commonly known as the “Smartphone Patent Wars”. She ordered Tim Cook and Choi Gee-Sung, […]
The smartphone patent wars and competition policy
By Paul Belleflamme 25 April 2012 13
Last Wednesday (April 18, 2012), Lucy Koh, a US District Court Judge, may have paved the way towards a truce on one of the fiercest fronts of what is now commonly known as the “Smartphone Patent Wars”. She ordered Tim Cook and Choi Gee-Sung, the CEOs of Apple and Samsung, to meet and work out […]
An ‘uncommon’ riddle
By Paul Belleflamme 17 November 2010 1
Here is just a riddle, which I ask you to solve. What do the following stories have in common? Pfalz Castle, once a toll booth on the Rhine river (knate.blogspot.com) 1. During the Middle Ages, it became impossible to carry on commercial trade on the Rhine River because of the toll booths built by all sorts […]