Hi Alan,
Thank you for your reply to my inquiry.
I see that you have taken issue with some of my points, and that you, on principle, oppose patents, and, with your company, uphold open source.
There has been a long standing debate between open source innovation (to get technologies, businesses and industries started) and patent protection (to deliver competitive advantage and monetary growth). In a young industry, like the cannabis industry, it certainly does make sense for open source to have a viable role, especially for small or family companies as I think you suggest. It can allow them to access stable products, brand their goods to develop their name, and in general grow their businesses.
However, for the more inventive companies in the industry it is equally important to be aware of what patents can do to protect and monetize inventions. Patents allow inventors to monopolize their inventions and recoup the costs of invention while also establishing competitive advantage over competition. There is nothing immoral about patenting an invention or about protecting inventions from infringement.
Further, as you make mention of the high costs of patenting, that cost isn’t so very high for a business to undertake, especially if you consider the return on the investment in a patent. The average patent may cost from $15,000 to $35,000 over a period of three years, but if it is well-practiced within four years of its inception it could conservatively be valued at $350,000 – $750,000. Patents grant their inventor a legal monopoly for a 20 year term, thus patent values often grow exponentially and deliver a very high return on their investment. I don’t think that could be said of open source inventions.
I think there is strategic room for both open source and patent protection in the cannabis industry. Your work making open source plants available is notable and of service to the industry. But it is not a service to the industry to suggest that patents have no role in the industry and that there is something immoral about patenting and competing to bring better products into the market.
Over the years, small companies using open source plants for their products will need to compete with other companies. They will naturally seek to differentiate themselves from their competitors by creating new and different products that others cannot copy. They will need to innovate and invent to survive, and they will need to be able to protect their inventions.
Yours,
Lindsay Moore