[A2k] Patent regimes and innovation in developing countries

[Silke Helfrich]

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Hello,
I received the e-mail below from the European Business Council on
Sustainable Energy, an organization I work with on the commons. They are
quite innovative (f.i. linking the energy debate with the open hardware
discussion). I don't dare to respond, since I am not an expert in the
field. It would be great to get some advice from people who are better
informed than I am.
Some links and current data would help, in English and German, your
opinion as well, of course.

Best regards and many thanks in advance
Silke Helfrich


 Am Mittwoch, den 11.11.2009, 17:56 +0100 schrieb Julio Lambing:

> Dear Ms. Helfrich,
>
>
> As you know, the European Business Council for Sustainable Energy is
> concerned with the question how eco-innovation, carbon-neutral and clean
> energy technologies can gain a foothold in developing countries.
> Therefore, for some time past we devote ourselves to initiating an Open
> Source Hardware Initiative including a database for these technologies
> which is to employ a model similar to the GNU (GPL) license.
> At one of our workshops, the representative of a major technology
> company pointed out that in various structurally weak developing
> countries there is no effective protection of "intellectual property".
> Thus, ruthless trend scouts can spot innovative inventions in these
> countries (e.g. in Afirca and make them available to companies
> in industrialised and threshold countries without sharing the benefits
> with the innovators. Therefore, we were called upon to advocate the
> strengthening of patent regimes in developing countries (with financial
> and juridical support by industrialised countries) in order to safeguard
> a just compensation for these innovators or communities.
>
> We are no experts regarding the question if and how patent regimes are
> effective in developing countries for local innovators and SMEs.
> Therefore, we address you as an adept of the international discussion on
> this topic.
>
> In general, for years there is a discussion on whether patents are an
> obstacle or a catalyst for the transfer of climate-friendly
> technologies. At the international climate negotiations, speakers from
> developing countries deplore the role of patents as an obstacle to the
> diffusion of climate-friendly technologies. We, as representatives of
> companies providing these technologies, are sceptical. Most
> carbon-neutral technologies are not patent relevant any longer, and
> there are providers of these technologies from developing countries in
> the market as well, so there is no monopoly. Furthermore, the main
> obstacle for employing climate-friendly technologies in developing
> countries are lack of investment capital and lack of know-how regarding
> available technologies and their maintenance. Patent-related problems we
> could only identify concerning corrosion protection for offshore
> windparks, the second generation of biofuels, CCS technology and,
> perhaps, some recent developments in the sphere of photovoltaics. We
> represent a considerable number of green companies which fought long and
> hard for their technologies and deem it unfair that, of all things,
> these technologies are drawn into the patent debate -- in contrast to
> those which polluted the Earth for decades. (Nevertheless, we deem it
> important to further eco-innovation on a voluntary base employing a true
> Open Source approach. Support, also financial support, would always be
> welcome ;-)  )
>
> Innovative climate protection technologies will be sought-after economic
> goods in the future. What is your estimate regarding the status quo of
> the international discussion on the strengthening of patent regimes in
> developing countries - or, rather, mechanisms for safeguarding
> compensation for innovations like "access and benefit sharing (ABS)"
> discussed in the biodiversity debate?
>
> Please feel free to forward these questions to other experts.
> Thanks a lot for your help and best regards
>
> Julio Lambing
>
> Managing Director
> e5 - European Business Council for Sustainable Energy
>
> Hauptstrasse 43
> D-61184 Karben
> Germany
> Fon: +49 6039 9291958
> Fax: +49 6039 9291961
> lambing@e5.org
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