Date: 2003/03/22 14:43
From: Gerry Gleason <gerry@geraldgleason.com>
To: discuss@ggpl.org
Carl Vilbrandt wrote:
> Should Organis design consider the Royalty-Free Patent Policy (W3C)
> and other types of compromise?
I wish we didn't need to, but with the current climate ... I think the
real question is whether to undertake this
only as a tactical tool to defend and expand the Open/Free IP space
under the GGPL, or to really take it on as a
strategic openning to decisively clear large spaces from the possibility
of falling under private control, and also
to advance affirmative arguments that help to coalesce the support and
energy of a large part of the Open/Free
source community. The GPL doesn't really deal directly with patents, it
is more of an exclusionary approach,
but if GGPL embraces patents in the same 'viral' way that the GPL
embraces copyright, you might have a
really powerful concept that will draw attention and activity to the
whole constelation of ideas that surrounds
it.
If we do make it strategic, the next question is how to relate and
connect with the world of private patents and
copyrights, and the political and legal frameworks that support them.
Clearly there is a lot to debate and work
out about these issues, and how you answer them will have a big impact
in the level of resistance you will see
from individuals and institutions as you try to sell your ideas and
expand your scope. I'm thinking of some
specifics, but it will be better to discuss them in the context of
Carl's funding challenges (other message).
>
> I tend to think that at the very least try to identify different
> phases of the development of the Organis structure based levels of
> development of digital technologies.
To be more explicite, in the start-up phase (now), we are embedded in
the curents systems and institutions (financial,
educational, political), and need to survive and flurish under their
terms. If this program is successful in the long run,
even if the legal frameworks of patent and copyright survive in anything
like their current form, they will not be that
significant because they won't represent a large fraction of total
economic activity.
One thing to consider is whether the Organis design ideas can be
patented as unique business processes and
organizational structures. Obviously this has to be handled very
carefully to avoid major strategic mistakes, but
it could be the way to initiate the strategic moves as discussed above.
Gerry
>
> # "W3C Unveils Its Patent Plans"
> CNet (03/19/03); Bowman, Lisa M.
>
> [ ... ]