Policies Said to Stifle Digital Innovation

“We have failed to build a constituency -- not from the top down but from the bottom up,” former FTC Commissioner Mozelle Thompson said. “Most people don’t understand the connection between investing in [digital] innovation and their own well-being because people don’t know what they are not getting. When politicians talk about the economy you don’t hear them talking about innovation.”

Other nations make wireless, mobile, and other digital technologies and platforms a priority, but not Congress and the Bush administration, Thompson said. “There needs to be a real reward for companies to invest in innovation beyond its natural product stream.” Another former FTC Commissioner, Lesa Mitchell, cited a “startling decrease in funding of state universities.” Speakers noted that in the early 1990s the University of Illinois fostered Marc Andreesen, who developed Mosaic, Netscape’s precursor. That funding would not be available today, they said.

Failing to make maximum use of American intellectual natural resources will push the U.S. further behind in new media innovation, speakers said. But it takes more than government to support digital innovation, said Thomas Kalil, special assistant to chancellor for science and technology at University of California-Berkeley. “We need more industry leaders to step up to the plate,” Kalil said. “I'd love to see them pursue innovation with the same fervor they do with litigation and stock options.” Kalil suggested “stapling green cards to students’ diplomas so they can stay in the U.S. If you wonder why we haven’t had an explosion in innovation,” it’s because the U.S. sends some of the best and brightest out of the country.

Immigration policy is critical to new media innovation, Mitchell said. Technologists’ inability to stay in America is why “a lot of venture capital is going to places like India and China,” Mitchell said.

Panelists agreed that proper policy would not only foster digital innovation but directly accelerate it. HP Research Senior Vice President Prith Banerjee said “smart policies are vital to provide a road to the private sector and a road to the public sector -- how best to increase research; how best to invest… We need to have an innovation stimulus package. Make a tax break a permanent package so companies will continue to invest in new technology.” -- Kathleen Tracy

Tech Policy Summit Notebook…

Judges aren’t tech-savvy enough when it comes to ruling on digital litigation, said Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs. And “it’s very difficult for a jury to understand the issues, and a lot of times the best lawyer wins the litigation,” he said at the Tech Policy Summit in Hollywood. Jacobs urged the FCC to open up licensing for low frequency spectrum, which he said “is very good for wide area services. The demand for data is growing dramatically. In any country where 3G services are launched, voice is flat but data is on an exponential curve.” Jacobs sees the future of digital in wireless, he said: “Wireless is going to be put into a lot of consumer devices. Phones, media players, game consoles are useless without wireless connection. We're working on a new microprocessor technology that will fundamentally change the kind of devices consumers use and the services they pay for,” and which will be announced at next week’s CTIA. Of biggest concern to Jacobs is immigration policy. “It’s become too politicized… The scariest thing is how we bring people here, train them then send them home.” Jacobs said it’s a case of bringing workers to the jobs or see jobs exported to the workers. -- KT

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America’s clogged patent process hinders hardware and software innovation and keeps new products from reaching consumers, said Jon Dudas, undersecretary for intellectual property and director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. He said over half the applications for new-media patents are rejected for failing to meet the “new, useful and non-obvious” standards. Wading through “bad applications” delays review and improvement of genuinely innovative patents, he said. The patent process can take five years, though in some cases a $130 accelerated examination is available that ensures a 12-month time frame. Protecting digital and consumer electronic technology innovation is a market-by-market problem, Dudas said. “In an ideal world, you could choose the countries you want to protect your innovation,” he said. “But one patent for the world is a long way off. Countries are not ready to grant sovereign rights determined by another country.” The Patent Reform Act “has a more than 50% chance of passing,” he said. “I think it’s going to come to the floor soon.” - HH