1. Software Patents Jules Theeuwes University of Amsterdam
Scientific Council for Government Policies
Open Forum on Draft SPLT
Geneva, Friday, March 3, 2006

2. Topics Dutch position on software patents
Economic Analysis of Patent Law
Different Life for Software Patents?
Evaluation

3. Dutch position on software patents
Same regime as other patents
“Socially acceptable”
No trivial patents
Doubts about business methods
Stress interoperability
Level playing field (SME)

4. Economic analysis of patent life
Balance between benefits and cost to society
Benefits:
More invention, creativity, R&D
But at decreasing rate over time
Costs
Monopoly losses
Limits to further developments
At an increasing rate over time

5. Costs and benefits of patent life€
MSC
MSB T*
Patent Life (years)

6. Different life for software patents?
Returns to scale kick in immediately
Exclusive rights on standards very costly
Relation to innovation is maybe weak
Patent battle: costly equilibrium

7. Cost of being different
More transaction costs
More confusion in the courts
Substitution to computer implemented inventions (hardware)

8. Conclusions Take a second look at Dutch position
Do cost benefit analysis