Which among the following does not fall within the rights of a patent owner?

• A. To sell the rights to an invention to another party
• B. To prevent another party from reading his work and basing a new invention
• C. To give permission to other parties to use his invention
• D. None of the above

Answer: (B)

The key idea is that patent owners have exclusive rights to stop others from making, using, selling, or importing the patented invention, and they can transfer those rights or license others to use the invention. What they cannot do is bar others from accessing the patent disclosure itself. Once a patent is published, its details are public knowledge, and people may read the information and use it as a basis to develop new ideas or improvements, within the bounds of the law. So the option that would prevent someone from reading the work and basing a new invention is not a right of the patent owner. Selling the rights or granting permission to use the invention are valid ways a patent owner can monetize or share the invention.