New Patent Law Means Trouble For Tech Entrepreneurs – Forbes.

I came across this article and decided to throw out a few comments of my own. The recent change in the US Patent law will have a number of consequences, but the impacts are a mixed bag in my opinion. One issue with this article is that it overstates the degree of “openness” of the current US innovation ecosystem. We may be “open” when compared to other countries, but my experience is that inventors, particularly in small companies, are quite careful in their discussions with potential investors, partners, etc. often requiring that a Non-disclosure statement be signed.

I do believe that patents are a critical piece of the innovation process, but they are not the only part and many would debate the relative importance of the components. The reality is that a  large number of patents are invalidated post issuance. I think attention on the innovation system needs to be placed upon the funding model, as this appears to be broken.