Patents: Last Week Tonight with John Oliver (HBO)

For inventors, patents are an essential protection against theft. But when patent trolls abuse the system by stockpiling patents and threatening lawsuits, businesses are forced to shell out tons of money.

Connect with Last Week Tonight online...

Find Last Week Tonight on Facebook like your mom would:

Follow us on Twitter for news about jokes and jokes about news:

Visit our official site for all that other stuff at once:
Connect with Last Week Tonight online...

Find Last Week Tonight on Facebook like your mom would:

Follow us on Twitter for news about jokes and jokes about news:

Visit our official site for all that other stuff at once:

[shanearnold]

Why the fuck is lobbying legal? It's glorified bribing

[stensoft]

The Senate wanted a change but unfortunately, passing laws against patent trolls is patented.

[pointedspider]

Volvo invented the seat belt in the late gave the technology away! Said it was too important for human safety to be patented!

[lucyparr]

Omg, guys, I'm from Marshall, Texas, I've fucking skated on that ice rink so many times during my childhood and I can tell you right now that downtown Marshall is nothing but law firms and places for the people who work in the law firms to eat (I say this because Marshall is definitely not a rich town and only the lawyers can afford to eat downtown often, like, we can't support a Chick-Fil-A ffs)

I was definitely not expecting to hear John Oliver say the name of my hometown... Wild

[TabrisChen]

Damn that draw a cat song (dance) is catchy

[Poopchute]

At 10:00 omg I was not ready for that hahaha

[sundog_]

There's a guy named Dan Avidan, and either his grandfather or his great grandfather essentially invented the adhesive part on electrodes and has saved millions of lives, and they have their patent just hanging up on the wall like it's nothing, and I think that's really humble honestly.

[abdelarmstr]

In France you cannot patent software or medical procedures.

[supersaiyandrgnslayr]

This is why I am trying to become a patent lawyer, to stop these trolls from screwing things up. There are laws that make some of these patents void.

[brain_apostrophe_t]

I could be a Harvard Graduate, a sexual performance champion and have the body of Kim Kardashian and I dont think I could maintain the kind of ludicrous self confidence that the cat weirdo has

[johnwelch]

John Oliver would be the best history teacher ever

[NevRmind]

This clusterfuck could be fixed so easily. New law: You don't use your patent for too long, you lose it.

(I'm definitely not the first person to think of this. If you happen to have a patent on this idea, please don't sue me....)

[evek]

As disgusted as I am by the "patent troll" companies, I find more disturbing that our senators can be influenced by the lobby groups to vote a certain way, even when goes against our best interests. Is this not corruption?

Is there a website that lists senators and the bills they voted for or against, so we can know whose interests they serve? Or how about a website that reveals the origins of their campaign donations?

[Falney]

John Oliver needs to file a patent of some description that will screw over the patent trolls. Something like "The method in which to apply for a Patent" or something.

[ComputersAreRealCool]

What stupid judge goes "You know what, I really think that guy really owns the right to EVERY SOFTWARE EVER INVENTED."

[DuranmanX]

US needs to go through a major reform

To speak in technological terms, it feels as if the Government is running on Windows 2000

[JayKayK]

In Denmark, anyone who files a lawsuit that ends up in court has to pay for the costs of the trial if they lose, it's common sense, I never expected a country would not have a system like this. I guess now I know why Americans are notorious for frivolous lawsuits.

[catfromcentauri]

As a Texan... I can confirm an outdoor ice rink sounds like a nightmare, we usually put them in air conditioned malls... And yes, that is exactly like a raccoon!

[jordillach]

"Calling them trolls is a little misleading. At least trolls actually do something." (02:51)
True, maybe they should be called PARASITES.

[michaelhelium]

8 years later, still a problem, yet this video was the highlight of my day.