An international legal system issues Halfbakery Warnings when halfbaked idea developers register. Developers must check with the idea development authorities and compensate if second to the act.

Enforced by UN or some other international organization.

Rationale: (thanks [perti])

A good idea posted on the HalfBakery and then reached full bakeability - cannot be patented, for the simple reason that the idea is now in the public domain. Investors will not want to develop the idea even if its a good one, because competition can easily take it and "blow it away".

So I propose to legalize the HB process starting in the US of A. An official section of government called the United States Half Bakery Office (USHBO) with a website (www.ushbo.gov.il) will be established, where you register development and investment in new ideas, although they were known in the public domain. Anyone who develops a similar idea will have to check first at the USHBO, and pay at least double the listed development costs if "infringing". If the original company is selling a product, the infringing company will have to compensate the first company for losses.

HB development rights will be given only to companies or individuals that have completed the development process.

This gives incentive to companies to be the first to complete development and the first to produce.

The law should be internationally accepted. If India and China agree you have it made. It would be in their interest since more companies would be developing new ideas - more work for the Chinese. (OK we all know that stealing, cloning and making low quality is big business, but in the long run you get richer by going the other way. See cases: Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan).

If a company developed but is not selling a product based on that development, other companies wishing to produce the idea, may either choose to pay a "development fee" (up to 100% of development costs) or IN ADVANCE get agreement that their idea was based on a patent / a different public domain idea / a new idea never published. If they develop without having this agreement in advance, they lost the right to claim against the first company.

The ushbo website will have lists of development projects and the websites or other public domain sources according to which this idea is being developed as well as a full description similar to patents but simpler to understand for the layman (in "US user manual" language) .
-- pashute, Jan 05 2011

Just like this? http://xkcd.com/827/
[hippo, Jan 05 2011]

Ideas marketplace Ideas_20marketplace
Shameless self promotion [xaviergisz, Jan 05 2011]

sp. Rationale
-- pertinax, Jan 05 2011


This has been mentioned on here before and there was a long discussion about it. I can't remember its upshot except that the consensus was that the intellectual property issue was not a concern. I wish i could remember why.
-- nineteenthly, Jan 05 2011


Posting to the halfbakery does not necessarily preclude patentability; if I remember right there is a two-year overlap period in US law for the creator to get the patent issued after public disclosure.
-- RayfordSteele, Jan 05 2011


Somebody sent me an e-mail saying they wanted to help me patent my Break-Away Purse idea. I just figured it was a solicitation of some form or another, and I still do. Although I always wondered why that one.
-- MikeD, Jan 05 2011


I find it hard to believe that you can publicise something and only two years later submit it to patenting. Anybody who submits it before you or even write's it somewhere in his own name as proof that he thought of it prior to your submittal would void you patent. No?
-- pashute, Jan 05 2011


Thanks hippo I liked XKCD (I liked 832).

But seriously, according to mine you don't just claim you thought of an idea. You PROVE that you are DEVELOPING a certain publicly known idea. The inventor gets compensation since the developer openly acknowledges they are developing your idea. And the DEVELOPER gets all the benefit, for using the idea.

The developer can always opt NOT to register, and use the idea, but then they have the risk that someone else WILL register (and compensate the inventor).

So its not at all like the "Just like this" link.

Oh, and maybe the "Halfbakery" in the title was a bad choice. Of course ANY idea publicized anywhere is valid. As long as someone wants to keep the development exclusive.
-- pashute, Jan 05 2011


//hard to believe that you can publicise something and only two years later submit it to patenting//

Once you publicly disclose it starts a clock ticking. I thought it was a one year deadline but don't quote me on that.
-- 2 fries shy of a happy meal, Jan 05 2011


//Once you publicly disclose it starts a clock ticking. I thought it was a one year deadline//

Yes, it is a one-year clock for U.S. patents, but the resulting patent is valid only in the U.S.A. Damn fureeners can infringe.
-- sqeaketh the wheel, Jan 08 2011


It's not difficult to get a patent, even for things which have been public for some time.

The problem comes when trying to enforce that patent. I have developed products which clearly infringe patents, but I know that those patents are unenforceable, because I can show examples which pre-date the patents.

If you want to protect your I.P., apply for patent before publishing on halfbakery or anywhere else.
-- Twizz, Jan 10 2011


:-) [twizz]

But I DONT want to patent. This idea is how to get people to publish their ideas WITHOUT patenting. Then if somebody LIKES the idea and DECIDES TO DEVELOP IT - they are enouraged to compensate the idea maker. That way you dont wind up with paying for unenforceable patents, and at the same time with less people keeping some good ideas in the drawer.
-- pashute, Jan 12 2011



random, halfbakery