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Patent Trolls Inbound: Our First Lawsuit

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Re: Patent Trolls Inbound: Our First Lawsuit

#91

Post by pxmpxm »

labrador wrote: post #3

I always thought Hotz an interesting character. This paragraph adds to that impression: "What he didn’t take into account is that comma isn’t run by rational actors in suits sitting on a committee. It’s run by me, George Hotz. I’m willing to lose $1M before I give him $10k. We will hire an amazing legal team, fight this, and while doing so invalidate his patents so they can’t be used against anyone else. Not because…

There very well may be a second order game theory at play - not only you broadcast far and wide that litigation will be exceedingly costly for anyone that tries, but you add an explicit threat that any attempt will result in invalidation risk to plaintiff patent portfolio.

For patent trolls, time spent on legal is mostly opportunity cost, but killing their patent portfolio has a real dollar cost associated to it.

Re: Patent Trolls Inbound: Our First Lawsuit

#92

Post by jjoonathan »

artdigital wrote: post #71
runnerup wrote: post #53

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Old Newegg. That lawyer has moved on along with the rest of the leadership after a change in ownership. Also George Hotz fought and cowed Sony’s legal team when he was a kid in a saga involving ‘marcan42 of Asahi Linux. These patent trolls must be very foolish to try to intimidate him. Edit: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Computer_Entertainment_...

Didn't he settle with Sony with the promise to never hack any other sony products in the future? (source wikipedia)

Yeah, and not a week later anonymous hacker(s) took down the Play Station network for 23 days. Either he did it himself and got away with it, which is impressive, or he inspired someone else to do it and get away with it, which is also impressive.

Re: Patent Trolls Inbound: Our First Lawsuit

#93

Post by nimbius »

labrador wrote: post #3

I always thought Hotz an interesting character. This paragraph adds to that impression: "What he didn’t take into account is that comma isn’t run by rational actors in suits sitting on a committee. It’s run by me, George Hotz. I’m willing to lose $1M before I give him $10k. We will hire an amazing legal team, fight this, and while doing so invalidate his patents so they can’t be used against anyone else. Not because…

ah yes, George hotz, the baba yaga of startup leadership

Re: Patent Trolls Inbound: Our First Lawsuit

#95

Post by acdha »

ummonk wrote: post #90

There needs to be an anti-patent-troll membership organization. You pay a fee relative to some metric and the organization acts as insurance against parent trolls by fully defending any patent lawsuits that are obviously unjustified. And to keep costs low, membership in this organization would be public to deter patent trolls from even trying to sue a member in the first place.

Here’s John Walker’s proposal for that in 1993 after getting extorted by the XOR patent troll:

https://www.fourmilab.ch/autofile/www/chapter2_105.html

I think the problem is that most of the major companies are comfortable writing it off as a cost of doing business and don’t want to give up the possibility of using strategic patent suits themselves.

Re: Patent Trolls Inbound: Our First Lawsuit

#97

Post by r3trohack3r »

ummonk wrote: post #90

There needs to be an anti-patent-troll membership organization. You pay a fee relative to some metric and the organization acts as insurance against parent trolls by fully defending any patent lawsuits that are obviously unjustified. And to keep costs low, membership in this organization would be public to deter patent trolls from even trying to sue a member in the first place.

I've seen an organization like this on HN in the past - but struggling to find the post.

A quick search turned up https://lotnet.com/ which I think is it

Re: Patent Trolls Inbound: Our First Lawsuit

#98

Post by boringg »

jacquesm wrote: post #13

I've been on the receiving end of one of these (for my own invention, no less), helped bust another. Much good luck to George Hotz on this one. I can't stand patent trolls and even as an atheist I secretly hope there is a hell so they will get what's coming to them.

I agree they are indeed a scourge.

Re: Patent Trolls Inbound: Our First Lawsuit

#100

Post by stjohnswarts »

labrador wrote: post #3

I always thought Hotz an interesting character. This paragraph adds to that impression: "What he didn’t take into account is that comma isn’t run by rational actors in suits sitting on a committee. It’s run by me, George Hotz. I’m willing to lose $1M before I give him $10k. We will hire an amazing legal team, fight this, and while doing so invalidate his patents so they can’t be used against anyone else. Not because…

Good I hope he destroys that patent troll's life and empties his bank account defending against it.
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