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IP Lawyer: If You Are Against Software Patents, You Are Against Innovation
http://techdirt.com/articles/20100107/0515207655.shtml
Well Respected VC Firm Comes Out In Favor Of Independent Invention Defense Against Patent Infringement Lawsuits
,----[ Quote ]
| Union Square Ventures has come out strongly
| in favor of an independent invention defense
| against patent infringement. This is great. I
| have no idea if I helped to make this come
| about, but a year ago, Union Square partner
| Fred Wilson had spoken out about how patents
| were harming his portfolio, and suggested
| some ways to fix the system (not including an
| independent invention defense). I responded
| with a post suggesting he consider an
| independent invention defense beyond his
| proposals, as it would really solve a lot of
| the problems. So it's really fantastic to see
| the firm take a stand on such an important
| issue -- proving once again what a lie it is
| to claim that VCs require patents.
`----
http://techdirt.com/articles/20100111/2233347712.shtml
Proposal: An Independent Inventor Defense Against Software Patents
,----[ Quote ]
| Iâm extremely excited to see Brad and Fred
| come out so strongly against software
| patents. Iâve been talking against this for
| a long time and I expect my rants against
| software patents are well known to any
| readers of this blog (if you arenât familiar
| with them, feel free to indulge yourself if
| you are so inclined.) But this is the first
| time that Iâm aware that any of my peers â
| other than my partners at Foundry Group â
| have come out so strongly in public against
| software patents.
`----
http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/post.aspx?bid=358&bpid=24647
Recent:
Other Legal Work Slow? Start A Practice To Help Patent Trolling
,----[ Quote ]
| From an economic standpoint, this activity
| is a pure dead weight loss on economic
| activity. There is nothing good that comes
| from it. You basically have companies that
| have ignored a patent they got for whatever
| reason, suddenly rediscovering it and using
| it to go after totally unrelated companies
| who actually innovated and brought products
| to market (almost always with no knowledge
| whatsoever of the questionable patent in
| the first place). And suddenly the actual
| innovators have to pay up to a company that
| did absolutely nothing with the invention.
`----
http://techdirt.com/articles/20091123/0159047049.shtml
Intellectual Ventures' patent protection racket
http://slashdot.org/submission/1068513/Intellectual-Ventures-patent-protection-racket
Nathan Myhrvoldâs Evil Genius
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| Until recently, one of the few points Myhrvold could make in his own favor is
| that he hadnât started suing firms that declined to license his patent
| portfolio. I say âuntil recentlyâ because weâre now learning that the lawsuits
| have started. IV has begun selling off chunks of its patent portfolio to
| people like Raymond Niro with well-deserved reputations for being âpatent
| trolls.â Threatening to sell patents to a third party who will sue you is more
| subtle than threatening to sue you directly, but the threat is just as potent.
| Myhrvoldâs âsales pitchâ to prospective licensees just got a lot more
| convincing.
|
| The fundamental question we should be asking about this business strategy is
| how it benefits anyone other than Myhrvold and the patent bar. Remember that
| the standard policy argument for patents is that they incentivize beneficial
| research and development. Yet IVâs business model is based on the opposite
| premise: produce no innovative products, spend minimal amounts on research and
| development, and make a profit by compelling firms that are producing products
| and investing in R&D to pay up. Not only does this enrich Myhrvold at everyone
| elseâs expense, but it also reduces the incentive to innovate, because anyone
| who produces an innovative product is forced to share his profits with
| Intellectual Ventures. Patents are supposed to make innovation more
| profitable. Myhrvold is using the patent system in a way that does just the
| opposite. In thinking about how to reform the patent system, a good yardstick
| would be to look for policy changes that would tend to put Myhrvold and his
| firm out of business.
`----
http://timothyblee.com/?p=781
Intellectual Ventures' Patents Starting To Show Up In Lawsuits
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| Intellectual Ventures, of course, is the Nathan Myhrvold company that has
| been building up a huge portfolio of patents with which to get big tech
| companies to pay many millions of dollars to not get sued -- and, according
| to many, to get a cut of future deals as well, making the whole thing sound
| suspiciously like a pyramid scheme.
|
| [...]
|
| But, a year ago, we noted that the company appeared to be getting antsy.
| While it was bringing in some hefty fees from a small group of companies who
| bought into the equity pyramid (which neatly lets the world outside be
| confused over what's "investment" and what's "revenue"), there was concern
| that investors were getting impatient. Pouring billions of dollars into a
| company that isn't doing much can make some investors a little anxious. And
| while we still don't know of any direct lawsuits, Zusha Elinson has noticed
| that Intellectual Ventures' former patents are starting to show up in court,
| often involving some of the most well known names normally associated
| with "patent trolling."
`----
http://techdirt.com/articles/20090903/0333546094.shtml
Intellectual Ventures Takes Indirect Route to Court
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| Both Apple and Microsoft have been reported to be IV investors.
`----
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202433490140&thepage=2
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