The real fundamental flaw with this free-market approach to handling IP assignments is the fact that it will further create an environment where smaller (start-ups, small businesses) entities trying to acquire PI space will face insurmountable challenges (eg, financial). While I think the majority of people these days would agree that the free-market approach to economics is definitely the best, certain resources are not very applicable to be traded in a free-market environment. I myself do not like over-bureaucratic processes, and while all of us at one time or another have complained about ARIN's procedures, policies, and practices, the purpose they serve is a needed one. Best Regards, -Michael -- Michael Nicks Network Engineer KanREN e: mtnicks@kanren.net o: +1-785-856-9800 x221 m: +1-913-378-6516 andrew2@one.net wrote:
3) What's wrong with treating assignments like property and setting up a market to buy and sell them? There's plenty of precedent for this:
Mineral rights, mining claims, Oil and gas leases, radio spectrum.
If a given commodity is truly scarce, nothing works as good as the free market in encouraging consumers to conserve and make the best use of it.
I think you're dead-on there, but you forget who you're really trying to convince. It'll happen eventually but in the meantime the greybeards who were largely responsible for the Internet as we know it (and who by and large still wield significant influence if not still stewardship) will be dragged there kicking and screaming from their academic/pseudo-Marxist ideals, some of whom seem to still resent the commercialization of the Internet. It's also hard to see the faults in the system when you are insulated by your position as member of the politburo.
The flip side of the coin of course is that if you let the free market reign on IP's, you may price developing countries right off the Internet which I don't think anyone sees as a desirable outcome. There's sure to be a happy middle ground that people smarter than I will figure out, and maybe it takes a silly lawsuit such as this to kick things off.
Andrew Cruse