The head of the feds' patent office lashed out Tuesday at critics of drawn-out legal battles over technology patents.
Patent and trademark office director David Kappos directed his speech at people who cite the recent smarphone battles as evidence the system is broken, Bloomberg BNA reported.
"Let's move beyond the flippant rhetoric and engage in thoughtful discussion," Kappos reportedly said at the Center for American Progress.
Indeed, the U.S. patent system has faced intense criticism for breeding way too much litigation.
Some legal industry watchers, like the prominent judge Richard Posner, say there are just too many patents and that patents shouldn't even cover software.
In his speech Tuesday, Kappos acknowledged there's growing litigation in the smartphone industry. But he said that litigation is actually a sign the patent system is working, Ars Technica reported.
"The explosion of litigation we are seeing is a reflection of how the patent system wires us for innovation," Kappos said. "It's natural and reasonable that innovators would seek to protect their breakthroughs using the patent system."
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