Democratização da produção (Parte VI)

Parte I, Parte II, Parte III, Parte IV e Parte V.

Um bom remate final para esta série passa pelo artigo "Patient-innovators fill gaps that industry hasn’t addressed — or can’t":

"Here’s a long-held assumption that’s ripe for a challenge: Valuable improvements in health and patient care should come from experts in the pharmaceutical, medical device, and related industries.
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There’s no question that such professionals are essential for innovation. But our research shows that patient-innovators also have important roles to play and will fill significant gaps that industry hasn’t addressed — or can’t. [Moi ici: E volto ao exemplo da Deutsch Post e da sua carrinha eléctrica]
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To understand what drives patient-innovators like these and the challenges they face, we worked with colleagues around the world to conduct nationally representative surveys in six countries. We also had face-to-face discussions with groups of collaborating patient-innovators.
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One of the big surprises from this work was how many people have embarked on journeys of medical innovation: as many as one million people in the six countries surveyed reported having developed medically related products for personal use.[Moi ici: E vai ser cada vez mais fácil, barato e natural experimentar]
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What drives most patient-innovators is the realization that something they want or need isn’t commercially available."

A fazer-me recuar mais de 12 anos e procurar esta citação:

"In 1970, 5% of global patents were issued to small entrepeneurs, while today the number is around one-third and rising."

E confrontar com:

"In addition to fulfilling a personal need, patient-innovators are also attracted by the learning they gain from the process and from sharing their innovations with people with similar needs. In short, it is a highly self-rewarding endeavor." 

Se não fosse esta disponibilidade para partilhar, os "small entrepreneurs" ainda tinham um peso muito maior no número de patentes.