Monthly Archives: December 2012

12 Responses to Compulsory Invention Policies at Public Universities

Posted on December 27, 2012 by Gerald Barnett

Here are twelve arguments that push back on public university claims to ownership of faculty-made inventions. 1. State control of scholarship.  So much for academic freedom. 2. Eminent domain.  Taking private property without just compensation for public universities. 3. Not … Continue reading →

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Maybe Some University Patent Policies Are So Bad They Are Simply Void

Posted on December 20, 2012 by Gerald Barnett

The University of Washington and University of California patent policies are rather strange.  Both have been interpreted by the university administrations as requiring assignment of any and all inventions faculty make, whether in their labs, offices, showers, on sabbatical, or … Continue reading →

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Keeping open 3d printing innovation open

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Gerald Barnett

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has announced an effort to monitor 3d printing patent applications for possible Pre-issuance Submission actions.  PIS is a new procedure in the America Invents Act patent reform that allows the public to provide patent examiners with … Continue reading →

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University Innovation Bill of Rights

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Gerald Barnett

Here are 10 elements for a university innovation Bill of Rights: 1. The university shall make no ownership claims to faculty or student scholarship, including inventions and discoveries, as a condition of employment, use of resources, or participation in sponsored … Continue reading →

Posted in Freedom, Innovation, IP, Policy, Technology Transfer | 1 Comment

State-mandated rainbow chasing

Posted on December 19, 2012 by Gerald Barnett

A Bill of Rights strategy is about limiting the claims of government and institutions in favor of personal freedoms.  By contrast, a Geneva Conventions strategy is about being decent to captives once they have become captive.  Most everything about improving … Continue reading →

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University patent policies as covert non-compete covenants

Posted on December 18, 2012 by Gerald Barnett

I have been looking at laws regarding non-compete covenants.  A non-compete agreement aims to prevent a worker from accepting other work that would compete with his or her employer or business partner.  In employment situations, this might include non-solicitation of … Continue reading →

Posted in Agreements, Freedom, IP, Policy | 1 Comment

Falling revenues for the model that never was, but is

Posted on December 10, 2012 by Gerald Barnett

An article by Jens Krogstad in USA Today, reposted at Innovation Daily, has the headline “Universities struggle with falling invention royalties”.   Well, no kidding.   The big biotech window of investment was 1980-1995.   Aging patents in university portfolios are expiring everywhere, … Continue reading →

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Three Innovation Propositions of the Moloch-State

Posted on December 7, 2012 by Gerald Barnett

As American public universities ramp up their claims to own faculty inventions, software, works of authorship, and even know-how, all in the name of profit-seeking from “commercialization”–by which they mean something along the lines of “making money when speculative monopolists … Continue reading →

Posted in Bayh-Dole, Freedom, IP, Policy, Present Assignment | 1 Comment