{"id":53197,"date":"2014-06-23T21:39:08","date_gmt":"2014-06-24T01:39:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/countingpips.com\/?p=53197"},"modified":"2014-06-23T21:39:08","modified_gmt":"2014-06-24T01:39:08","slug":"tesla-set-the-bar-now-will-others-follow","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.investmacro.com\/forex\/2014\/06\/tesla-set-the-bar-now-will-others-follow\/","title":{"rendered":"Tesla Set the Bar, Now Will Others Follow?"},"content":{"rendered":"
June 23, 2014<\/div>
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By MoneyMorning.com.au<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n

I have to apologise to you.<\/p>\n

When I started Tech Insider<\/em><\/a> earlier this year I promised I would keep things simple. I said I would make complex ideas and concepts easy to understand. I said I’d spare you the jargon and gobbledygook, and speak to you like a normal person.<\/p>\n

Well today, I’m breaking that promise…sort of.<\/p>\n

Today there’s going to be some technical mumbo-jumbo. It’s an important part of the story I’m about to tell you. Mind you, I don’t necessarily understand all the mumbo-jumbo myself. And I’ll do my best to break it down for you. <\/p>\n

However, these are highly technical explanations. And I’m no physics professor studying quantum mechanics, so there is a point to which my brain will go. Thankfully however I’m pretty sure you won’t need to be a member of Mensa to understand where I’m going today.<\/p>

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Last week I wrote about Tesla Automotive [NASDAQ:TSLA]<\/strong> and the release of their patents<\/a>. I theorised that perhaps the real motivation behind this disruptive move is Tesla’s expanding Supercharger network.<\/p>\n

But there’s far more to this story than Tesla’s business case behind their move. Sure it might reshape how the company makes future profits, in a good way I might add. However, this move has far greater repercussions, not just across the electric car industry, but also across all business globally<\/em>.<\/p>\n

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Patent 7,698,078<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

I want to stress the importance of what Tesla has done. And I’m going to tell you why it’s so important to the wider business community.<\/p>\n

You see, Tesla releasing their patents is like a case study of what ‘open source’ business could<\/em> be like.<\/p>\n

This goes against any kind of traditional business model. It’s like Apple telling everyone how to make an iPhone or like Coke giving away its secret recipe.<\/p>\n

From Tesla’s perspective, this is all about ‘technology leadership’<\/a>. In Elon Musk’s own words, ‘We believe that applying the open source philosophy to our patents will strengthen rather than diminish Tesla’s position in this regard.<\/em>’<\/p>\n

The question this also raises is, ‘what patents?’<\/p>\n

So here’s an example of what Tesla are giving up.<\/p>\n

US Patent 8,563,825 defines, ‘State of charge range<\/em>’. In describing what this means the patent’s abstract states, ‘A system and method for improving cycle lifetimes for a lithium-ion battery pack, particularly for adapting to a dynamic use profile for a user.<\/em>’<\/p>\n

That means the car’s battery learns how the driver drives and adapts its discharge according to a whole range of ‘operational parameters’. The car learns how you drive. That’s pretty advanced tech<\/a>, if you ask me.<\/p>\n

Then there’s patent D672,307, ‘Vehicle integrated display and mount<\/em>’. Simply, that’s the design of the Tesla’s unique center console.<\/p>\n

<\/a>
\nSource: USPO Patent D672,30<\/strong>
\nClick to enlarge<\/a><\/em><\/div>\n

So if you were interested in building your own electric car, then you would be free to use this design without fear of Tesla breathing down your neck.<\/p>\n

Or how about patent 7,698,078, ‘Electric vehicle communication interface<\/em>’. This patent states,<\/p>\n

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‘A method of communicating with an electric vehicle wherein the method includes a step of installing a communication device in the electric vehicle. The method also includes establishing a connection from the vehicle to a network. The methodology also includes controlling and monitoring a battery in the electric vehicle.<\/em>’<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

This is basically an explanation for a connected car — a connection from the vehicle to a network. Tesla has a patent for the entire future of the car industry. And they’ve given it up.<\/p>\n

And therein lies why Tesla made this move.<\/p>\n

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Perhaps this is the future we’ve been waiting for<\/strong><\/h2>\n<\/p>\n

Imagine a future world the same as it is now. A world in which a world of electric cars is still<\/em> a dream that’s another decade away. Where we all still queue up at the petrol station when the price per litre drops below $5. That’d be horrible.<\/p>\n

In keeping their patents to themselves, Tesla would have been a culprit in stifling technological advancement. They’d be just like everyone else.<\/p>\n

That’s not the Elon Musk way. Brilliant inventions need to be free in the wild. This allows other brilliant inventors to innovate, advance and develop new technologies<\/a>. It allows the entire community to improve and advance these technologies.<\/p>\n

In an open source environment everyone can contribute to the development of the technology. <\/p>\n

This is a principle that many software engineers also take with developing new programs. You build a strong, robust piece of software, then let it into the wild. Soon enough it’s become something far bigger than you started with.<\/p>\n

Open source is the reason the 3D printing industry has exploded and is one of the fastest growing industries in the world. This is the reason the Android operating system on smartphones is the most widely used operating system in the world.<\/p>\n

Open source is the new business model. And Tesla is the first major corporation to make the whole company<\/em> open source. This could be the start of a revolution not in electric cars, a revolution in how the biggest companies in the world operate.<\/p>\n

As I mentioned at the top, this is really a test case. Other businesses will watch how Tesla progress from here with an eagle eye. If Tesla can go on to be even bigger and stronger with an open source business model it might open the floodgates for others to follow suit.<\/p>\n

Imagine how quickly the world could advance if patents didn’t exist? Imagine if all inventions were open source from the beginning. Competition would be fierce, but maybe it would be better competition.<\/p>\n

Perhaps we’d end up with better companies, more responsible leaders and a better world for everyone.<\/p>\n

It’s the ultimate libertarian<\/a> approach; open the gates and let the wider community figure it out. It puts a high level of trust in your fellow man, which could backfire.<\/p>\n

Musk believes this is the right approach to take. He thinks this will improve the technology, improve the industry and ultimately improve the world. And I think he might be right.<\/p>\n

Sam Volkering+<\/a>
\n Technology Analyst, Money Morning<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Ed note:<\/strong> The above article was originally published in Tech Insider<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\nBy MoneyMorning.com.au<\/u><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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