On Friday, June 3, 2022 at 9:57:49 AM UTC-4, ltlee1 wrote:
"As its economy was being bombarded with Western sanctions in early March, Russia decided to amend a section of its civil code. The world took little notice of decree number 299, which authorised the use of patented inventions, including in medicine
and digital technology, from “unfriendly countries” without asking the owner for permission or paying any compensation. Unsurprisingly, Ukraine, which Russia invaded, is deemed “unfriendly”. So are America and the eu, which are not at war with
Russia but are pounding its economy and arming the Ukrainians.
Russia’s move is not illegal under international law. Countries are allowed to make exemptions to patent rules in a national emergency. Cumbersome paperwork and tedious price negotiations can cause delays. But some compensation, no matter how paltry,
is expected. Under Russia’s new law, though, patent holders could get nothing.
Although the law applies only to patents, which protect inventions, it indirectly gives a free pass for other kinds of intellectual-property (ip) infringement. This is because the courts will offer little protection against opportunists, says Maria
Ostroshenko, an ip lawyer at alrud, a Moscow law firm. She notes that some Russian judges are now asking why the ip of international companies, including trademarks and copyright, deserve protection. This has never before been in question.
Western firms are already feeling the shift." https://www.economist.com/business/2022/06/02/has-russia-legalised-intellectual-property-theft
Pay Western firms millions of dollar to use a patent.
Or use the same patent free with Russia.
Guess what most developing country would prefer?
Patents are the root cause of increasing inequality all over the world and consequently
more frustration among common people all over the world. The US is worst than most
other countries.
The following is excerpted from Robert Reich's 2020 book "The System":
"Even as the American middle class shrinks, America now has more billionaires than at any time in
its history. There are basically only four ways to accumulate a billion dollars, and none of them is a
product of so-called free market. They all depend on how the system has become organized.
One way to make a billion is to exploit a monopoly. Jeff Bezos is worth $110 billion. You might say
he deserves it because he founded and built Amazon. But, as I have pointed out, Amazon is a monopoly
with nearly 50 percent of all e-commerce retail sales in America (and e-commerce is gaining the lion’s
share of all retail sales). Consumers have few alternatives. Nor do many suppliers who sell through
Amazon; for the first twenty-five years of its existence, Amazon wouldn’t let them sell at a lower price
anywhere else. Amazon’s business is protected by patents granted to Amazon by the U.S. government
and enforced by government. If we had tough antimonopoly laws, and if government didn’t grant Amazon
so many patents and extend them for such a long time, Bezos would be worth far less. The same applies
to people like George Lucas, Oprah Winfrey, or any other figure whose brands, ideas, or creations depend
on patents, copyrights, and trademarks—intellectual property laws that have been dramatically extended
in recent decades. If these were shortened, these people would be worth far less, too."
Without doubt, Decree 299 iss meant to be a form of sanction from Russian point of view in response to
US led economic sanction. But it could be a game changer or a badly needed revolution for people from
all other nations.
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