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How to slaughter a patent troll in 5 steps

pandodaily.com

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Re: How to slaughter a patent troll in 5 steps

#21

Post by thinkcomp »

robotcookies wrote: post #16
x0054 wrote: post #4

I think a tool is necessary to allow people who are threatened with litigation, but are not yet part of a lawsuit, to find each other. So, if some lawyer contacts me and tells me that I am infringing on patent X, and I should settle before trial, it would be awesome if there was a site where I could go and register (anonymously) that I am being threatened with litigation for infringement of patent X. The site would l…

Good idea. It might also be good to track the names of the lawyers involved (and not just the names of the shell companies they're hiding behind). Most know the laws may eventually change to make patent trolling harder and that their industry may not last forever. Many probably plan on working in tech if this happens. If these lawyers knew their reputation could be sullied by working for patent trolls and that tech c…

PlainSite does this. You can tag lawyers with "Patent NPEs" (or anything else), see which lawyers are tied to patent assignments, and see which lawyers represent plaintiffs and defendants in patent litigation cases. On any lawyer's or law firm's profile you can also see a list of their clients.

Re: How to slaughter a patent troll in 5 steps

#22

Post by radley »

greenyoda wrote: post #14

I'm very surprised that nowhere in the article does the author advise someone in this position to get a lawyer. If I were being sued by a patent troll (or anyone else), the very first thing I'd do is hire competent legal counsel and let them communicate on my behalf. Not being a lawyer myself, I don't know how to figure out whether the troll's suit is frivolous or not, and I don't know whether some offhand remark I m…

"When a patent troll serves you with a lawsuit, you need to review the lawsuit as quickly as possible to determine if your company is infringing the patent referenced in the lawsuit."

Doing this with an attorney goes without saying. This isn't a jr league blog.

Re: How to slaughter a patent troll in 5 steps

#25

Post by smsm42 »

zdean wrote: post #3

"I’m personally willing to commit over $1 million to fight this injustice..." The other 5 steps would seem pretty irrelevant as a defendant in the absence of the above resource.

That's true. But then again, there are many people/companies that have millions and still choose to settle because it's cheaper this way. If they refused to be terrorized and instead chose to inflict pain on the trolls, trolling would cease to be that lucrative of a business, I suspect. It's useless to sue somebody who has no money at all, and if it would be dangerous to sue somebody who does have money, the target of the trolls would grow small and so will the profits. Maybe they'd move to relatively more respectable ventures, like selling fake rolex watches or copywriting for recently deposed Nigerian princes.

Re: How to slaughter a patent troll in 5 steps

#27

Post by smsm42 »

rhizome wrote: post #20
jackschultz wrote: post #2

Besides generic software patents, the oddest one I've seen is being able to patent a color. Since Nike has the patent on the color "Maize", Adidas had to come up with a new color for Michigan athletics. Also, I'm not sure how prevalent it is, but there may be an opportunity for a business of being the go to firm for fighting these trolls. Like the article said, being familiar with the companies and the process makes…

I hadn't heard that one, but Yves Klein patented a color in France 50 years ago: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Klein_Blue

I think the patent was about the chemical, not the color as a hue. This is essentially the same idea as drug patents.

Re: How to slaughter a patent troll in 5 steps

#28

Post by WildUtah »

noonespecial wrote: post #15
zdean wrote: post #3

"I’m personally willing to commit over $1 million to fight this injustice..." The other 5 steps would seem pretty irrelevant as a defendant in the absence of the above resource.

That's what I came to post. Step 6 seems to be "have a million dollars".

It's not exactly "have a million dollars."

The read sixth step is "have a million dollars you don't mind spending without getting anything back for it."

If you win a patent suit, you don't win anything. You're just out a million or two dollars for nothing. And it means the patent troll has to look through his portfolio to find another one to use for the next time he decides to blackmail you.

Re: How to slaughter a patent troll in 5 steps

#29

Post by osipov »

x0054 wrote: post #4

I think a tool is necessary to allow people who are threatened with litigation, but are not yet part of a lawsuit, to find each other. So, if some lawyer contacts me and tells me that I am infringing on patent X, and I should settle before trial, it would be awesome if there was a site where I could go and register (anonymously) that I am being threatened with litigation for infringement of patent X. The site would l…

My friend has something like that launched in a private beta. Feel free to PM me with the email address where you would like to receive an invite.

Re: How to slaughter a patent troll in 5 steps

#30

Post by osipov »

netforay wrote: post #6
x0054 wrote: post #4

I think a tool is necessary to allow people who are threatened with litigation, but are not yet part of a lawsuit, to find each other. So, if some lawyer contacts me and tells me that I am infringing on patent X, and I should settle before trial, it would be awesome if there was a site where I could go and register (anonymously) that I am being threatened with litigation for infringement of patent X. The site would l…

That is exactly what I thought after reading this article. Good idea. If some one can make the spec, I can get it done.

Would you be interested in taking a look at a site like that? It would be great to get your feedback!
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