U.S. Patents and Innovation

U.S. Patents and Innovation

A man talks on a mobile phone in front of an Apple logo outside an Apple store in downtown Shanghai on September 3, 2012 (Aly Song/Courtesy Reuters).
A man talks on a mobile phone in front of an Apple logo outside an Apple store in downtown Shanghai on September 3, 2012 (Aly Song/Courtesy Reuters).
Blog Post by Renewing America Staff
December 21, 2012 10:56 am (EST)

This week saw more high profile patents in the news. Apple alone saw the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issue initial rejections of its patents on "pinch-to-zoom" and other iPhone features while it fended off a claim from Google's Motorola Mobility, while in Europe smartphone rival Samsung faces antitrust scrutiny patent lawsuits against Apple.

In this CFR Backgrounder, U.S. Patents and Innovation, Renewing America contributor Steven J. Markovich discusses how patent policy--including 2011's America Invents Act--can help or hinder innovation as large firms, entrepreneurs, and patent trolls deploy patents as shields and swords.