Intellectual Property Rights Can Either Help or Hinder Innovation, According to Latest Kauffman Policy Digest
Kansas City, Mo. (PRWEB) April 07, 2015 -- Government-granted rights allow creators to profit from their work while enabling others to build on and benefit from these innovations. But according to a new Entrepreneurship Policy Digest released today by the Kauffman Foundation, although intellectual property protections can increase productivity and firm valuations, they also can be inefficient and hinder innovation if they are too weak or too strong.
The Policy Digest offers an overview of how policymakers can strike the right balance with a “Goldilocks approach,” which includes:
• Encouraging follow-on innovation by protecting those who avoid existing patents and punishing those who ignore them
• Reducing the prevalence of ambiguous or broad patents, which increase the likelihood of accidental but costly infringement
• Dramatically increasing maintenance fees to discourage patents that are held but not practiced
Read the full Digest here.
The Kauffman Foundation’s Policy Digests consist of summaries of findings around relevant policy issues that will inform and educate policymakers. To read the entire Policy Digest on intellectual property and to sign up to receive subsequent Digests, go to http://www.kauffman.org/policydigest.
About the Kauffman Foundation
The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is a private, nonpartisan foundation that aims to foster economic independence by advancing educational achievement and entrepreneurial success. Founded by late entrepreneur and philanthropist Ewing Marion Kauffman, the Foundation is based in Kansas City, Mo., and has approximately $2 billion in assets. For more information, visit http://www.kauffman.org.
Barb Pruitt, Kauffman Foundation, +1 (816) 932-1288, [email protected]
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