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Global News Blog: Intellectual Property; All That and a Bag of Microchips
April 25, 2009
Posted by Kendra Kahanek
Would someone consider companies trying to create monopolies or gain much needed money for their nation? In South America, a company known as Ceitic in Brazil will deliver the first set of locally produced microchips both in their nation and internationally. This will help technology for the future by spreading the chip around the world giving engineers the chance to use or enhance this new microchip but with a cost.
Interestingly, the spokesperson for Ceitic, the company that created this new microchip, explains that Brazil will gain two benefits from the creation and distribution of this microchip. First intellectual property, meaning that whoever wants to produce these chips will pay “royalties” to Ceitic.
Secondly, the company desires to consolidate a national chip industry and in effect allow the electronics industry in Brazil to mature, according to a Brazilian scientific article.
Two stances on intellectual property referring to this predicament need recognition. The first stance is the idea that intellectual property rightfully benefits a company. Companies need money, especially if they have just spent an extensive amount of money creating the new microchip it would help for the organization to be reimbursed.
A second position states that a company needs to make the chip available to the public rather than under patent law giving anyone the right to improve on this piece of technology without a fee. Engineers would have the opportunity to gain recognition just like Ceitic by enhancing the new microchip.
Should a company choose to better the whole world or gain money from their tireless endeavors? Both seems like the solution to this question but how would this be implemented in society, nationally, and internationally?
If the chip was made available through a Creative Commons License, the engineers who work on the future versions would likely not gain recognition as Ceitic did. What they would do is improve the chip for everyone, including Ceitic, to use. What Ceitic needs to do is figure out what they can make and sell that works ONLY with their chip, so that they can benefit from the future improvements to the chip AND make their money selling the acessories that work with it. That way, EVERYONE wins — the inventor, the scientific community, and the public.