It may appear odd that states grant monopoly rights for patented inventions, while so much of a government’s regulatory activity in the business sector is aimed at discouraging monopolistic behaviour, e.g. through the Competition Act. The state grants this monopoly only in return for the full and early disclosure of the nature of the invention through the patent application process.

This is generally thought to be a benefit as it means that others may understand the technology, learn from it, and so stimulate the rate of technological progress. It also means that after twenty years the new invention becomes available to all. This may be better than the situation that prevails where inventions were kept secret.

It is arguable also that in the absence of some sort of protection of rights, some forms of commercial development would not take place at all. Pharmaceuticals, for example are vastly expensive to develop but generally relatively easy for another researcher to analyse and reproduce. In the absence of patent protection the original research company would be unable to recoup its investment.