Re:VC from Asia is skyrocketing
by sumanthvepa on Friday April 13, 2018 @09:11PM
(#16835244)
It is utterly ridiculous that to take an =idea= is considered theft. In that case, pretty much every American corporation can be accused of theft. Google: Stolen from alta vista, Microsoft: Stolen from CP/M, Apple: Stolen from Xerox, The american space program: stolen from the Nazis! If that's the basis for accusing China of stealing IP, it's a pretty weak argument.
For example, if you buy a competitor's product to take it apart, replicate its components and assemble lots of knock-offs, you have some validation that the product is going to work, without having to do any costly planning and design yourself. All of that works without literally breaking into the competitor's factory to steal their equipment or their code.
For a lot of really valuable IP you won't find an open source implementation, or if you do, you won't be able to legally use it, at least as long as software patents are a thing.