Letters

11/08/2005 - John Melius addressed to Congressman Lamar Smith, Committee on the Judiciary

As reflected by the title of your committee, the internet and other software related issues have displaced the policy considerations that gave rise to the creation of proprietary rights to intellectual property originally created by the Founding Fathers as a policy consideration for promoting economic growth. Intellectual property rights are limited monopoly rights established in Article One, Section 8, of our Constitution and regulated by statute and/or common law to strike a balance between conflicting policy objectives. Patents are an incentive system for encouraging public invention and creative expression to maximize society’s access to these new inventions and creative works. Patents are an integral part of the “American Dream” for both the patentee and the public at large. Invention has made America great and does so today! More...

07/15/2005 - Stephen Wren, inventor/actuary
To Senator Christopher Bond
regarding open testimony of IPO Board President J. Jeffrey Hawley

Senator Bond:

Please permit me to respond to the testimony presented at a spring hearing regarding patent reform (Wednesday, April 20, 2005) and the proposed legislation. For brevity, I will reserve my comments by responding to Mr. Hawley’s remarks as presented at that time.

As to Mr. Hawley’s statement that the Intellectual Property Owners Association (IPO) represents “small business and individual inventor members”, looking at their web site their references to “patent trolls” tells a different story. That is a name large companies use to describe independent inventors and small companies who have the audacity to assert patents against them. The only valid patents to them are those they own. More...

07/08/2005 - Ron Riley President, Professional Inventors Alliance USA

The story about the international community’s dislike of America’s strong intellectual property laws should be an eye-opener for Congress. In her July 7 business article, “European Parliament Nixes Software Patent Law,” Jan Sliva highlighted how the European Parliament overwhelmingly rejected by a vote of 648-14 a bill that “stopped short of the U.S. system that allows patenting of business methods or computer programs.” More...