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Defensive Patent Aggregation
Defensive patent aggregation (DPA) is the practice of purchasing patents or patent rights to keep such patents out of the hands of entities that would assert them against operating companies. The opposite is offensive patent aggregation (OPA) which is the purchasing of patents in order to assert them against companies that would use the inventions protected by such patents (operating companies) and to grant licenses to these operating companies in return for licensing fees or royalties. OPA can be practiced by operating companies or Non-Practicing Entities (NPEs) Operating companies must often defend themselves against claims of patent infringement. To prevent such litigations, operating companies sometimes purchase patents in technologies which they use or develop. Another motivation for operating companies to acquire patents is the ability to counter-assert such patents in case another operating company files a patent litigation. Operating companies have also pooled their effor ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patent
A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an enabling disclosure of the invention."A patent is not the grant of a right to make or use or sell. It does not, directly or indirectly, imply any such right. It grants only the right to exclude others. The supposition that a right to make is created by the patent grant is obviously inconsistent with the established distinctions between generic and specific patents, and with the well-known fact that a very considerable portion of the patents granted are in a field covered by a former relatively generic or basic patent, are tributary to such earlier patent, and cannot be practiced unless by license thereunder." – ''Herman v. Youngstown Car Mfg. Co.'', 191 F. 579, 584–85, 112 CCA 185 (6th Cir. 1911) In most countries, patent rights fall under private law and the patent holder mus ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles River Ventures
Charles River Ventures (CRV) is a venture capital firm focused on early-stage investments in technology. The firm was founded in 1970 to commercialize research that came out of MIT. Its name comes from the Charles River. History The firm has raised over $4.3 billion since inception across 18 funds. Upon closing of the 16th fund, the firm rebranded to CRV. Prior to that, CRV's 15th fund closed in February 2012 with $375 million of investor commitments. CRV's 14th fund raised $320 million of commitments. In 2013, it purchased a large portion of Pebble Technology for 15 million dollars and is credited as the primary reason why Pebble was sold to Fitbit in December 2016. This netted CRV nearly 40 million dollars. Among CRV's portfolio companies are Airtable, Amgen, Aveksa, Blippy, Cascade Communications, ChipCom, Ciena Corporation, ClassPass, Continental Cablevision, Crushpath, DoorDash, Drift, Earbits, Fiksu, iBasis, mabl, Netezza, OneLogin, Parametric Technology Corporation, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
PatentFreedom
PatentFreedom is an on-line community of companies that access and share information about non-practicing entities that own and enforce patents primarily to collect license fees. The company offers membership to operating companies as well as law firms representing them. The company was founded in May 2008. Patent Freedom was acquired by RPX Corporation in June 2014. Products and Services PatentFreedom is a membership organization where members pay annual subscription fee to gain access to extensive information on non-practicing entities. Existing members can also contribute to the information about who are asserting patents. PatentFreedom subscriptions are offered to both companies and law firms. The information includes who the entities are, who is funding them, and who they have asserted their patents against. The company has electronic dossiers on 680 entities, 2100 subsidiaries, holding more than 50,000 United States patents and applications, and involved in 8,900 litigati ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Intellectual Ventures
Intellectual Ventures is an American private equity company that centers on the development and licensing of intellectual property. Intellectual Ventures is one of the top-five owners of U.S. patents, as of 2011. Its business model focuses on buying patents and aggregating those patents into a large patent portfolio and licensing these patents to third parties. The company has been described as the country's largest and most notorious patent trolling company, the ultimate patent troll, and the most hated company in tech. In 2009, the firm launched a prototyping and research laboratory, Intellectual Ventures Lab, which attracted media controversy when the book '' SuperFreakonomics'' described its ideas for reducing global climate change. The firm also collaborates on humanitarian projects through its Global Good program. Overview In 2000, Intellectual Ventures was founded as a private partnership by Nathan Myhrvold and Edward Jung of Microsoft, later joined by co-founders Pet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patent Pool
In patent law, a patent pool is a consortium of at least two companies agreeing to cross-license patents relating to a particular technology. The creation of a patent pool can save patentees and licensees time and money, and, in case of blocking patents, it may also be the only reasonable method for making the invention available to the public. Competition law issues are usually important when a large consortium is formed. History In 1856, sewing machine manufacturers Grover & Baker, Singer, and Wheeler & Wilson, all accusing each other of patent infringement, met in Albany, New York to pursue their suits. Orlando B. Potter, a lawyer and president of Grover & Baker, proposed that, rather than squander their profits on litigation, they pool their patents. This was the first patent pool, a process which enables the production of complicated machines without legal battles over patent rights. In 1917, the two major patent holders for airplanes, the Wright Company and the Curtiss Co ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Patent Trolls
In international law and business, patent trolling or patent hoarding is a categorical or pejorative term applied to a person or company that attempts to enforce patent rights against accused infringers far beyond the patent's actual value or contribution to the prior art, often through hardball legal tactics (frivolous litigation, vexatious litigation, strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPP), chilling effects, and the like). Patent trolls often do not manufacture products or supply services based upon the patents in question. However, some entities which do not practice their asserted patent may not be considered "patent trolls" when they license their patented technologies on reasonable terms in advance. Other related concepts include patent holding company (PHC), patent assertion entity (PAE), and non-practicing entity (NPE), which may or may not be considered a "patent troll" depending on the position they are taking and the perception of that position by th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Unified Patents
Unified Patents is a member-based organization whose goal is reducing the number of non-practicing entity (NPE) assertions in specific technology areas. Background Instances of NPE patent litigation have grown recently: NPEs (commonly referred to as patent trolls) accounted for the majority of patent infringement litigation in the U.S. in 2012, compared to less than a quarter in 2007. This is because NPEs can achieve a quick return on investment since most companies settle rather than fight, even if they believe the assertion to be invalid. Unified permits small and large companies alike to become members. Smaller members act as an early warning system by notifying Unified of NPE demand letters in exchange for notifying Unified if they ever plan to sell a Patent to an NPE. Unified defines discrete technology zones for members to join, including cloud storage, content delivery, or electronic payments to ensure Unified’s deterrence is focused. Unified also directly challenges ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
LOT Network
The LOT (License on Transfer) Network is a nonprofit organization that was formed to combat patent assertion entities (PAEs), also known as patent trolls, by cross-licensing patents that fall into the hands of PAEs. Background LOT started as a Canon, Google and Red Hat-led initiative in 2014, and its founding members were mostly technology companies. Companies from other industries such as finance and automotive have joined the network to protect themselves from the growing threat of PAEs. As of July 2020, LOT Network had more than 750 members and close to 2.5 million patent assets. Notable members of LOT include Google, Red Hat, Uber, Ford, Dropbox, Mazda, General Motors, Honda, CBS, Netflix, JPMorgan Chase, SAP, Microsoft, Tesla, Alibaba, the Wikimedia Foundation, and IBM. The number of patent disputes in the U.S. peaked in 2015, reaching 7,500 cases. According to Unified Patents, two-thirds of these cases were filed by patent trolls. A study out of Boston University found ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
Kleiner Perkins, formerly Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB), is an American venture capital firm which specializes in investing in incubation, early stage and growth companies. Since its founding in 1972, the firm has backed entrepreneurs in over 900 ventures,"Assets" Kleiner Perkins, 2019 including , , , |
Invention
An invention is a unique or novel device, method, composition, idea or process. An invention may be an improvement upon a machine, product, or process for increasing efficiency or lowering cost. It may also be an entirely new concept. If an idea is unique enough either as a stand alone invention or as a significant improvement over the work of others, it can be patented. A patent, if granted, gives the inventor a proprietary interest in the patent over a specific period of time, which can be licensed for financial gain. An inventor creates or discovers an invention. The word ''inventor'' comes from the Latin verb ''invenire'', ''invent-'', to find. Although inventing is closely associated with science and engineering, inventors are not necessarily engineers or scientists. Due to advances in artificial intelligence, the term "inventor" no longer exclusively applies to an occupation (see human computers). Some inventions can be patented. The system of patents was established ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
RPX Corporation
RPX Corporation (Rational Patent EXchange) is an American provider of international risk management services for patents. The company was founded in March 2008, and is based in San Francisco. It was incorporated on July 15, 2008. By acquiring patents that pose potential problems and providing information on litigation, RPX seeks to reduce patent assertions directed at its clients. RPX provides a defensive patent aggregation service to mitigate clients' risk of litigation from non-practicing entities (NPEs) – also called patent trolls – which acquire patents for the sole purpose of licensing and asserting their patent rights. RPX identifies and purchases patent assets they identify as of high value, relevance and risk that could be used offensively against members of the company's client network. Depending on the situation, RPX may acquire assets from a third party or directly from an NPE. When necessary and possible, RPX will buy patent rights out of an active litigation. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Allied Security Trust
Allied Security Trust (AST) is an independent, not-for-profit cooperative that provides its members with a method of mitigating the risk of patent assertions and litigation. Business Each member contribute to the operating expense of the trust, and hold funds in escrow for the purchase of patents. Each member's escrow funds are used for the purchase of only those patents that they are interested in. The members involved in the purchase are then licensed to the patents. After a certain period of time, the patents are sold or donated. This is known as a catch and release strategy. AST does not litigate. Members Allied Security Trust public members in 2023, include * Avaya * Adobe * Cisco * Dolby * Google * IBM * Intel * Meta * Microsoft * Oracle * Philips * Salesforce * ServiceNow * Snap * Sony * Spotify * Uber * Verizon Executives *Russell Binns, Jr., CEO {{cite web, url=http://www.alliedsecuritytrust.com, title=Homepage - Allied Security Trust, website=Allied Security Trust, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
