[kictanet] - don't be a statistic: Ten Inventors who "changed the world" but got a raw deal from their Billion dollar inventions

Tue Oct 30 20:03:11 EAT 2018

 [long post - but contains plenty of insight nuggets]
So we have interesting argument that often comes up in IP discussions... Perhaps a lack of IP protection contributes to the "success" and/or ubiquity of an invention? 
I've heard this (flawed) argument before and even spent quite a bit of time researching it. What I learned is that defective arguments can sound very persuasive, but they have no basis in fact or logic (though often framed as pseudo-facts or pseudo-logic). 
Such arguments are founded on simplistic reasoning that ignores the multitude of factors and variables that contribute to market outcomes. 
The truth is, you have *no way* of telling what could have happened if a popular unprotected invention was patented, so the argument is fundamentally defective and thus pointless.
The fact is, the number of commercially successful (and ubiquitous) products that have IP protection is *far* higher than those without protection, and the sale of these products has funded R&D for numerous follow on products as well as newer inventions.
Bic biro pen is globally ubiquitous and is a patented product. CocacCola, another globally ubiquitous product is based on the worlds most heavily protected IP. Your (smart) phone, laptop, PC etc contain *hundreds* of patented innovations (hardware/software). The medical field relies on IP protection (otherwise we'd all be in trouble for slow progress on disease management). Your car contains patented products that enhance safety... I could go on and on..
Secondly the defective argument casually brushes off the interests of the original inventor. Does it not matter that the inventor was not rewarded for contributing to the incremental advancement of humanity? If the inventor is from a poor country, it *should matter a lot*. 
Overwhelming factual evidence shows that in any industry or sector, when the key actors fail to organise for collective benefit, they get exploited by predatory gatekeepers and middlemen. This prevents entire sectors from taking off despite the potential. 

Music/movie pirates claim that they are popularizing the artists, but the most pirated music/film belongs to artists who were *already* popular, having sunk a ton of sweat and money into marketing. What piracy really does is *deny* the artist income for their efforts and creativity, making it extremely hard (financially and motivationwise) to come up with the next hit. This leads to wasted talent and destroyed potential. No one documents *that*. 
The music industry in Kenya became profitable after the artists came together to form collective rights management organisations (similar in concept to IP focused Cooperative). Prior to that, artists could be exploited by everyone, especially corporates and media houses. Now, you can be a millionaire with music.
This proves that rewarding innovators/IP fairly promotes more innovation/IP leading to a virtuous cycle of growth and prosperity.
ICT, Film and TV producers have failed to organize and so they are struggling in an industry that makes numerous (not just one or two) multi-millionaires elsewhere e.g. in Nigeria, India, South Africa (and to a lesser extent, TZ for film/tv).
So... when someone uses flawed reasoning to push an argument, it helps to question whether the person is aware that the reasoning is defective, and if it turns out that the person doesn't care, the issue of *motive* (red flag) needs to come up at the back of your mind. 
Without the exclusivity offered by IP protection, anyone can launch any product and that leads to a downward spiral of value destruction.
Did you know that even your name is a form of IP (hence your gov issued certificate i.e. "ID" that prevents people from impersonating you to profit from or harm your brand)?
Imagine if 1,000 people with fake IDs report to your workplace tomorrow and claim to be the real you, then demand your job or Salary. How would the employer know the real you? 
This is why your name (your personal trademark) is protected in law such that even you can't change it without going through a complicated legal process e.g. swearing an Affidavit in front of a magistrate. You don't even need to register a business name if you do business using your own name. Its a legal tradename already. Your fundamental IP.
IP protection deters predation and freeloading. It encourages the rewarding of legitimate Innovators and allows everyone associated with them to win, including the entrepreneur, investors etc by giving them a critical and exclusive window of opportunity to recoup their risky investment.
Without IP protection frameworks, there is very little incentive to invent, innovate or commercialise. Too much competition, common with unprotected ideas, leads to razor thin margins and no funds for further R&D. 
To understand this even better, please watch Peter Thiel's Stanford lecture: "Competition is For Losers".
https://youtu.be/3Fx5Q8xGU8k

Good evening!
Patrick.

    On Tuesday, October 30, 2018, 12:39:20 PM GMT+3, Sidney Ochieng <sidney.ochieng at gmail.com> wrote:  

 Something we tend to ignore in stories like this is that perhaps because the technology was not patented it allowed it to spread further and faster than it might have otherwise. 
On Mon, 29 Oct 2018 at 21:54, Patrick A. M. Maina via kictanet <kictanet at lists.kictanet.or.ke> wrote:

This amazing article includes "everyday" products/technologies you have probably used recently e.g. Bic biro pen, Segway, Computer Mouse, Polio Vaccine, Fidget Spinner, Karaoke Machine and WWW (hypertext). Can you imagine the inventors got a raw deal? In most cases other people profited from the inventor's brilliance due to failure to protect their IP.
Some fascinating takeaways:
That magnetic stripe on your debit/credit card: apparently the inventor didn't realize its value and failed to patent the idea. A multi-billion (if not trillion) dollar oversight. 

Sometimes you just don't know the real potential of your idea/creation and this can lead to disastrous decisions. Especially when a bunch of people in flashy suits tell you that "ideas are worth nothing" - yet they want to meet you in their posh office for hours to hear your ideas. Others hold elaborate competitions with pomp and prestige; offering you a chance to be a celebrity. But hold on, time is money; why would someone spend precious time listening to (or evaluating) "worthless" stuff? Perhaps its not as worthless as they want you to think...?
Inventor of LED (light emitting diodes) was way ahead of his time and, though he foresaw a future with LEDs, he didn't take smart steps to ensure that he was part of that future. Now LED bulbs are a billion dollar industry - and he doesn't get even 1 cent in royalty. 

Just because people don't "get it" immediately doesn't mean your idea is worthless. You could be ahead of the curve and the market just needs time to catch up (which can be months or years or even decades). Only strategic patience (long term thinking) can keep you grounded and ready for opportunity when it finally knocks. If you must, shelve your "failed" idea for another day, and work on others, but *never* *ever* give it away! 
The Bic biro pen inventor sold his patent for US$2Million, which turned out to be "peanuts" because more than 1 Trillion Bic pens have been sold to date. Due to information asymmetry, that sweet buy-out deal might not be a fair valuation. Resist the 100% offer. Keep a small percentage to get royalties in perpetuity.

You cant lose what you never had. Protect your ideas and push back (or walk away) when offered tempting, but strategically lousy, short term deals.
Here's the article:
10 Inventors Who Made No Money on Their Inventions

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10 Inventors Who Made No Money on Their Inventions

Meet 10 people who had the spark of genius but weren't able to translate it into a fat wallet.
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