Two Ways The U.S. Patent Office Could Do Better At Examination

The patent examination process is rife with problems. Too often, patent law supports applicants seeking unwarranted monopolies—not the public interest. That’s why we get things like Amazon’s patent on white-background photography. This is especially true when it comes to software and so-called “business methods,” a catchall term for patents that are often granted for trivial innovations on well-known concepts, like financial hedging. 

Fees from patent applicants pay about 85 percent of the budget of the U.S. Patent and …

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