It's a radical idea but the implications are worth thinking about. It could well stimulate innovation rather than prevent it. Certainly it's well past time to reconsider the lengths of copyright and patent. What author really needs their creation protected 70 years after their death? A long patent might make some sense for inventions that require a lot of investment before they can be sold, like drugs, but does it really make so much sense for those that will be obsolete long before a decade is up?
http://rajivsethi.blogspot.com/2010/02/on-intellectual-property-and-guard.html