Friday food for thought: Benjamin Franklin on patents

If I asked you to take a guess at Benjamin Franklin’s views on patents, I suspect you’d think that he would support a strong patent system. That was my guess. He’s known to have been an inventive guy…seems logical that he would support a patent system that rewards and encourages inventive efforts.

If you made that guess, you’d be wrong…just like I was wrong.

If he were around today, Ben Franklin might be an open source programmerConsider this passage from The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin:

“In order of time, I should have mentioned before, that having, in 1742, invented an open stove for the better warming of rooms, and at the same time saving fuel, as the fresh air admitted was warmed in entering, I made a present of the model to Mr. Robert Grace, one of my early friends, who, having an iron-furnace, found the casting of the plates for these stoves a profitable thing, as they were growing in demand. To promote that demand, I wrote and published a pamphlet, entitled “An Account of the new-invented Pennsylvania Fireplaces; wherein their Construction and Manner of Operation is particularly explained; their Advantages above every other Method of warming Rooms demonstrated; and all Objections that have been raised against the Use of them answered and obviated,” etc. This pamphlet had a good effect. Gov’r. Thomas was so pleas’d with the construction of this stove, as described in it, that he offered to give me a patent for the sole vending of them for a term of years; but I declin’d it from a principle which has ever weighed with me on such occasions, viz., That, as we enjoy great advantages from the inventions of others, we should be glad of an opportunity to serve others by any invention of ours; and this we should do freely and generously.” (emphasis added)

It sounds like Ben tinkered…and invented…simply to help others, and probably for fun and to satisfy curiosities. He didn’t need any motivation to invent or to disclose his inventions, which renders a patent system useless for him.

I bet if Ben were around today, he’d be an open source programmer, inventing all sorts of new software and sharing them with everyone.

You can view and read the Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin online at the library of The Worldwide School.