X-Laser could just have kept quiet and copied the best design, without offering any incentive... I doubt any of us would have filed a patent application for our red moduleīs design.
They are offering you money to help recover some of the costs... if you donīt like the offer, just donīt take it!
They didnīt say "if you win. surrender your design to us, and nobody else will be allowed build it"
Thatīs just silly...
To be fair I think $1000 is nothing in this hobby, they should have offered more cash... but as I said... they didnīt even have to... they could just wait, watch and copy...