Inventors Digest Opinion: The Story of the Bullied Patent Owner, by Gene Quinn
This post originally appeared in the Inventors Digest on January 17. 2016.
We frequently hear about large corporations being held up and left completely helpless due to bullying at the hands of smaller companies or individuals who own patents. Although this narrative makes little sense, that fairytale has dominated the public debate on patent reform for years.
Those in the industry are aware that there is a handful of bad actors on the patent-owner side, but it equally well known that there is real and substantial abuse and bullying perpetrated by large companies against smaller companies and patent owners. The story of the bullied patent owner, which is far more widespread than any bad-acting patent troll, is never told. The lack of reporting unfortunately lends credence to the myth that large companies operate like saints and patent owners operate like sinners. The truth, of course, lies somewhere in between.