Tech Workers of Japan, Unite and Come to America!

This is a story I came across during my recent trip to Japan:

Nichia Corp, the Japanese manufacturer of the blue light emitting diode (LED), this month agreed to pay 840 million yen ($8 million) to a former employee in compensation for his invention of the technology to make the blue LED, which has turned a once minor chemical company in rural Japan into a virtual world monopoly in the production of the blue LED.

The court-mediated settlement of the dispute over the inventor’s demand for a huge amount of compensation drew wide public attention not just as industrial news but as an event of major social impact prompting a rethinking of individuals’ position in organizations in Japan in general, and engineers’ in business corporations in particular.

It also has prompted businesses to consider a system to adequately compensate for employee inventions, something that has been left in the dark in the past but has assumed crucial importance in this age of growing importance attached to intellectual property rights.

At the time of his invention, Nakamura was given a mere 10,000 yen bonus. What I saw on TV was a livid man holding a press conference and saying, “It’s as if the court is telling me to go to America. America is a society which actually rewards creativity.” There were also interviews on the street where people said he didn’t receive enough. Any thoughts?

3 thoughts on “Tech Workers of Japan, Unite and Come to America!”

  1. Well…yes and no. Many companies in the US require employees to sign over rights to any inventions developed during their stay at the company. It would be reasonable to expect more than a $100 ‘attaboy’ gift for such a valuable invention, and the company would be wise to pay enough to retain such talent, but legally he could be up shit creek — even in the States.

  2. (すみませんが、うまく翻訳してください!アダム君お願い!)

    あるニュース番組の中での意識調査の結果です。
    東京大学の理系の学生10人に質問。「今回の事件を踏まえた上で、それでもあなたは日本で研究をしたいですか?」

    全員が「YES」。番組が仕掛ける取材ですから、多少の情報操作はあるかもしれませんが、彼らが日本を選んだ理由は以下の通り。

    1、私は日本人なので母国の利益のために研究するのは当たり前だ。
    2、外国人とうまく分かり合える自信がない。(日本人と研究する方が楽だ。)

    主にこの2つ。「あなたの研究による発明の価値が200億円です。」といわれた時、この学生たちの意識は180°変わるのではないだろうか。お金は怖い。

  3. NSG has a point. One good example is the original Apple I computer, developed by Steve Wozniak while he was working at Hewlett Packard during the day. Although they didn’t actually own the rights to his work, he was required by his contract to show any outside invention to his bosses and allow HP first opportunity to license it. Luckily for Woz, Apple, and perhaps the entire PC industry which followed, HP had no interest in developing a ‘personal computer’ and let Woz take his cute little toy and start a company in his garage with his buddy Steve Jobs.

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