Question

Discuss the trade-off that society faces from longer versus shorter patents.

Answer 1

The term of a patent is a maximum time period during which it is valid and can be enforced. The longer the patent term, the greater the exclusivity for the invention and the greater the time taken for the technology covered by the patent to enter the public domain, thereby creating a technological lock-in.

  A patent could have a shorter term than the specified 20-year period for a variety of reasons: A challenge to a patent may result in its early invalidation, and non-payment of renewal fees could result in its lapse.

Historically, the Crown in the UK granted patent-like privileges for a 14-year period, as it usually took seven years each to train two apprentices in a new technology that came from continental Europe through migrants. Thus, the UK capped the term of a patent at 14 years.India had a five- to seven-year patent term for pharmaceuticals before becoming a member of the WTO.

The present 20-year patent term was mandated by the TRIPS agreement.However, in some sectors like information technology and electronics, where technology is ever-changing, granting 20-year protection does not make sense. In industries where prices gradually decrease within the first few years of the introduction of the new technology, such an extensive period of protection without an economic basis is unwarranted.