What is the rationale of a patent system?
The rationale that has been traditionally argued to justify patents is the gains of society through the public disclosure of the invention and the further advancements that may be made on the technology. Awarding patents makes the details of an invention available publicly for further improvement by other inventors and also free for exploitation by anyone after the patent has expires. If inventors did not have the legal protection of their ideas, it is argued that, they would prefer to keep their inventions secret. However, over the past 15 years, there has been an explosion in criticism of the patent system. Many critics consider them an excessive privilege and perceive problems with the social costs associated with the patent system. Some of these critics intends to reform patent systems while other critics lobby for the abolishment of the patent systems as whole. These considerations as well as the political and ethical dimension of patents are a continuous debate around the world.
