[Luineancaion]

Patents are screwed up... And Pilot you have things wrong, patents don't cover copying, that is copyright. Also everyone including companies should be free to copy and improve the work of others. As Newton said "If I saw so far, it was only because I stood upon the shoulders of giants". If companies couldn't copy and improve the work of others, we'd be so far behind with technology.

Patents are stupid, they give a monopoly on ideas, even if you come up with the idea all on your own and never saw someone elses version of something similar you can be sued for it. Even worse, in America, it is a first to file system, even if someone had created a device before you, but had not patented it, you could then go patent it and try to sue them as you were the first to file for the patent.

Patents are meant to be used for only original and non-obvious creations/inventions. But the patent system is screwed up, infact a patent lawyer in Australia, to show how screwed up the system is, managed to get a patent on the wheel!!!