Against Monopoly

defending the right to innovate

Monopoly corrupts. Absolute monopoly corrupts absolutely.





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If It Ain't Broke - Fix It With IP

An earlier post observes that fashion design - and industry with thriving innovation and no IP - is eager to put new designs under lock and key. Needless to say, the culinary industry is not far behind. Pete Wells article in food and wine (hattip: Jesse Walker) describes Homaru Cantu's great new innovation: patenting recipes.

For all his originality, Cantu is not the only one who thinks that the ideas born in a restaurant should belong to the chef. There are at least two ways to claim legal protection for intellectual property. One is Cantu's route, through patents, but another, copyrighting a dish, could have much more far-reaching effects on the culinary world. Chefs have traditionally worked on an open-source model, freely borrowing and expanding on each other's ideas and, yes, sometimes even stealing them outright. But some influential people are now talking about changing the copyright law so that chefs own their recipes the same way composers own their songs. Under this plan, anyone who wanted to borrow someone else's recipe would have to pay a licensing fee.

Am I alone in doubting that this will increase culinary innovation?


Comments

Someone should remind the French chefs of their forefathers' inclination towards liberté, égalité, fraternité:

  1. All chefs have equal rights.
  2. All chefs support each other as brothers.
  3. And no chef, surely, would require the suspension of another chef's liberty simply to obtain an unfair economic advantage?

It is sad that just as the anachronism of monopolistic artifice hits the buffers, the publicity this crash causes make a few bystanders jealous that they've missed the gold rush.

Perhaps these deluded chefs are hoping they might squeeze a few tiny grains of economic incentive in copyright's twilight years?

And all these years they've been saying how computers will revolutionise the kitchen as they enable millions of housewives to share recipes with each other.

"Where's mum?"

"Oh. She's just been arrested for 'file-sharing recipes with the intent to prepare meals or derivatives thereof'."


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Most Recent Comments

Killing people with patents

Questions and Challenges For Defenders of the Current Copyright Regime Subject Very controversial Gráfica em

The right to rub smooth using a hardened steel tool with ridges Finally got around to looking at the comments, sorry for delay... Replying to Stephan: I'm sorry

Let's See: Pallas, Pan, Patents, Persephone, Perses, Poseidon, Prometheus... Seems like a kinda bizarre proposal to me. We just need to abolish the patent system, not replace

The right to rub smooth using a hardened steel tool with ridges I'm a bit confused by this--even if "hired to invent" went away, that would just change the default

Do we need a law? @ Alexander Baker: So basically, if I copy parts of 'Titus Andronicus' to a webpage without

Do we need a law? The issue is whether the crime is punished not who punishes it. If somebody robs our house we do

Do we need a law? 1. Plagiarism most certainly is illegal, it is called "copyright infringement". One very famous

Yet another proof of the inutility of copyright. The 9/11 Commission report cost $15,000,000 to produce, not counting the salaries of the authors.

WKRP In Cincinnati - Requiem For A Masterpiece P.S. The link to Amazon's WKRP product page:

WKRP In Cincinnati - Requiem For A Masterpiece Hopefully some very good news. Shout! Factory is releasing the entire series of WKRP in Cincinnati,

What's copywritable? Go fish in court. @ Anonymous: You misunderstood my intent. I was actually trying to point out a huge but basic

Rights Violations Aren't the Only Bads I hear that nonsense from pro-IP people all the

Intellectual Property Fosters Corporate Concentration Yeah, I see the discouragement of working on a patented device all the time. Great examples

Music without copyright Hundreds of businessmen are looking for premium quality article distribution services that can be

Les patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines

Les patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines

Patent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover "the single most destructive force to innovation is patents". We'd like to unite with you

Bonfire of the Missalettes!

Does the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was "broken," TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since
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For the legally or statist minded, \nyou can consider yourself subject to a <a href=\"http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/\">Creative Commons Attribution License</a>.</small></p>\t</td>\n\t<td class=\"a22\">\n\t\t<br>\n\t</td>\n\t<td class=\"a23\" valign=\"top\">\n\t\t<a href=\"/index.php?limit=0&chunk=0\">back</a></p><h3 class=\"headline\"><a href=\"/index.php?perm=886089000000000545\">If It Ain't Broke - Fix It With IP</a></h3>  <div class=\"post\"> An <a href=\"http://www.againstmonopoly.com/index.php?perm=886089000000000508\">earlier post</a> observes that fashion design - and industry with thriving innovation and no IP - is eager to put new "], "copyright__copyright__copyright": ["", "", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since", "bution services that can be\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nLes patent trolls ne sont pas toujours des officines\n\nPatent Lawyers Who Don't Toe the Line Should Be Punished! Moreover \"the single most destructive force to innovation is patents\". We'd like to unite with you\n\nBonfire of the Missalettes!\n\nDoes the decline in total factor productivity explain the drop in innovation? So, if our patent system was \"broken,\" TFP of durable goods should have dropped. Conversely, since"]}