ABSTRACT
Especially when new technology fields are created, the question arises of whether patents should be granted in this field.1 For an economy in autarchy, the answer is rather simple: when social benefits exceed the social costs including the negative effects of the market power introduced by patents, protection should be offered in the new technology field. More interesting, however, is the problem in an international context where some countries already provide patent protection for inventions in the newfield and others have to decide on the issue. A recent example includes the discussion on patents on computer-implemented inventions in the European Union (EU).
