[dorkbotnyc-blabber] Fwd: IP and licensing on Instructables

[douglas irving repetto]

>From: "Christy Canida" <canida at instructables.com>
>Subject: IP and licensing on Instructables
>Date: Mon, 26 Mar 2007 21:46:19 -0700
>
>Hello,
>
>You're receiving this email because of your interest in the 
>intersection of technology, art, science, intellectual property 
>rights, open source communities, media, and policy, and your 
>influence on these fields through your writing and discussion.  
><http://www.instructables.com/>Instructables is a leader in 
>user-driven innovation, as discussed last Sunday 
><http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/25/business/yourmoney/25Proto.html>in 
>the New York Times, and we'd like to share the ideas and trends 
>we're seeing with you so we can get your feedback. 
>
>Intellectual property (IP) rights are a hot-button issue among all 
>creators, but few understand the legal details. 
>
>Those who create music, text, and images can copyright their work 
>under the Creative Commons and similar licenses, but no such 
>equivalent exists for patentable ideas.  Instructables users may 
>choose to license the copyrightable portions of their Instructables 
>under any of the available licenses, but the problem remains- what 
>of potentially patentable IP? 
>
>Current patent laws are geared toward large corporations- the law 
>has been written to accommodate and reinforce the needs and goals of 
>corporations and their lawyers.   Individuals rarely have the time, 
>money, and legal knowledge to file well-written patents, much less 
>defend them- and a patent is only as good as the legal defense 
>mounted in its support.
>
>Given these systemic problems, what should an inventor do with his 
>or her idea?  It turns out that one of the best things to do with a 
>new, good idea is to share it. 
>
>Instructables is a great forum to publicize your idea, whether 
>you're interested in pursuing a patent or not.  Under US patent law, 
>one has a year after publication of an idea to file a provisional 
>patent.  Publishing an idea on Instructables provides exactly that 
>stake in the sand, and can bring plenty of discussion about prior 
>art and potential modifications to the original project.
>
>That year can be a valuable time to test the waters.  The 
>Instructables community can help identify potential collaborators or 
>business partners, and investigate the appeal and potential 
>commercial viability of an idea.  At the end of that year, you're 
>more likely to know whether it makes more sense to apply for a 
>provisional patent, or to simply let your idea pass into the public 
>domain.  This idea is then unpatentable by others, so the idea will 
>be available to other inventors to use, build upon, and remix 
>without restriction.
>
>Instructables users are on the forefront of this discussion, testing 
>the viability of these new models.  For more information, check out 
>Instructables founder and CEO Eric Wilhelm's Forum posts which cover 
>these issues in more depth, and particularly the user discussions in 
>the comments. 
><http://www.instructables.com/forum/EEMFZXN1G5EXCFLKHF/>Open Source 
>Hardware and the Creative Commons
><http://www.instructables.com/forum/EHHSR0JGQHEYVZCYFX/>The value of 
>sharing patentable ideas
><http://www.instructables.com/forum/E3OF1KVB63EZIXCCSN/>The cost of 
>aggressive licensing of University patents
><http://www.instructables.com/id/E472H22CXTEXCFCWRD/>Open-source 
>design of a keyboard system
>
>What do you think should be happening in these areas?  How do you 
>see these developments affecting the individual inventor?  We'd love 
>to hear your thoughts via either public or private channels.  Feel 
>free to contact me at canida at instructables.com for more information.
>
>Thanks!
>
>Christy Canida
>canida at instructables.com
>


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