Isn't that the point, though. Allow someone to profit from it rather than make it free to use. If there is another way to do it, that is not patented but free, they will use that, even if the code is objectively worse. See media codecs for example at the moment.

I think the original intention was to motivate people to create new technologies. If you spent your life savings designing and prototyping a new product in your shed you don't want a giant company being able to go "cool, thanks I'll make them myself and run you out of business".

The whole point is that you'll invest into it because you'll be able to profit off it afterwards