

The Patent Troll Myth - null_para
http://www.buildingipvalue.com/06US_Can/113_116.htm

======
null_para
"So what do these patent trolls do that is so wrong? Apparently, the answer is
that patent trolls do not manufacture the technology that is embodied by the
patents that they seek to enforce. But is this really wrong? The answer to
this should be a resounding ‘No’. Consider the names of some individual
inventors who ultimately formed companies to exploit their ideas, yet
initially manufactured nothing: Westinghouse (air brake), Ford (car), Gillette
(razor), Otis (elevator), Goodyear (synthetic rubber), Kellogg (grain
harvester), DuPont (gun powder), Owens (glass) and Fermi (neutronic reactor).
This list represents just a few of the individuals who, in most cases, worked
alone and without corporate support, yet created not just new inventions, but
whole new industries that today employ millions of people."

I guess they executed their ideas too...

It's a well written article, what does HN think?

~~~
karmajunkie
I think its a troll.

"Apparently, the answer is that patent trolls do not manufacture the
technology that is embodied by the patents that they seek to enforce."

This is a strawman. The issue isn't that patent trolls are generally NPE's.
The issue is that they seek to leverage dubious and obvious patents that never
should have been granted in the first place. By capitalizing on the
overburdened USPTO's tendency to grant patents by default, they are retarding
innovation in the industry and leeching profits off companies who are doing
nothing but implementing obvious solutions to problems.

