Abstract
This article presents a historical review of the historical review of the policies on intellectual property of the United States and discuss the harmonization of patent systems among countries. The USA has devised policies favoring patents since the foundation. Till the beginning of the 20th century the patent system contributed to its industrialization. After 1929, however, antitrust law was given priority over patent law. This new so-called anti-patent trend lasted for about fifty years during which the rights of the patentees were strictly restricted. The second turning point took place at the end of the 1970s. with the lowering of the USA's comparative industrial competitiveness, pro-patent policies were introduced. In particular, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) founded in 1982 played an important role in this respect as well as the "Young Report" that explicitly pointed to the importance of intellectual property as a tool of industrial competitiveness. As a result of the new pro-patent policies 1) the validity of patent rights has increased from 40% to 70%, 2) the rule of equivalence has led to a broad interpretation of rights, and 3) the amount of damages awarded has risen dramatically. With regard to the harmonization of patent systems among countries, the impact of the USA's new pro-patent policy has been felt all over the world, by the USA pointing to differences among patent systems and entering into negotiations to harmonize the systems among developed countries and to strengthen protection from patent infringement in developing countries. Two bodies have severed as the major fora for the negotiations, namely, the GATT Uruguay Round on the trade-related aspects of intellectual property rights (TRIP) and World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) on concluding the Patent Law Treaty. The author deems it desirable to establish a consensus about patent systems and protect appropriately intellectual property worldwide.
