[…] Der Patentschutz werde in allen Industrieländern hochgehalten, sagte Blocher nach der Bundesratssitzung. Es gehe daher nicht an, den Patentschutz in der Schweiz «auf das Niveau der afrikanischen Staaten und der Piratenländer im Fernen Osten» zu senken. Wer in die Entwicklung eines Produkts investiere, müsse das Recht haben, über den Preis selber zu bestimmen und Parallelimporte zu verhindern. Das ergebe sich aus dem Schutz des Eigentums. «Nur Entwicklungsländer haben keinen solchen Schutz.» […]
Quelle: Leuthard gegen Parallelimporte
[…] Also a vital role in this Swiss expansion during what is sometimes called the ‘Second Industrial Revolution’ is assigned to another free rider feature, namely the absence of a patent law until 1907. Denounced as ‘practices of robber barons’ and ‘a system of parasitism’ by foreign competitors, this institutional anomaly is believed to have facilitated the emergence of powerful food-processing, chemical, and engineering industries in the late 19th century, as Swiss entrepreneurs could adopt new technologies without having to bear any of the high development costs.
Quelle: When did the Swiss Get so Rich? Comparing Living standards in Switzerland and Europe
Eine Monographie befasst sich ausschliesslich mit diesem Thema:
Schiff 1971: Industrialisation without National Patents
In this monography, the economic historian Eric Schiff tells the story of the emergence of some of Europe’s biggest corporations. They came into being in Switzerland and the Netherlands during the period (1850-1907 in Switzerland; 1869-1912 in the Netherlands) in which neither country recognised patents. Some of them appear to owe their very existence to this exemption. Switzerland and the Netherlands eventually adopted patent laws in response to threats from other industrialised nations. This, Schiff argues, was a political decision, not an economic one. It is, he notes, „difficult to avoid the impression“ that the absence of patent laws „furthered, rather than hampered development“.
Quelle: Forschungsarbeiten über die Volkswirtschaftlichen Auswirkungen von Patenten
Ein wenig Geschichtskenntnisse würden den Glorreichen Sieben (echt geiles Bild, Micheline!) gut tun …
