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"Fair Trolls" To Fight Patents With Patents

Posted by kdawson on from the living-above-the-bridge dept.

FlorianMueller writes "Can a patent troll ever be fair? Yes. The primary concern over the upcoming Defensive Patent License — a GPL-like non-aggression pact for patents — is that it might be too defensive to have the desired impact. But actually the DPL could grow very big if one or more 'Fair Trolls' are brought to life and enforce patents against companies that don't support the DPL. The 'Fair Trolls' would commit to the DPL's terms, so they would have to leave other DPL backers alone. In exchange for this, the community would gladly feed them with patentable ideas (financial rewards for contributors included). Over time, staying outside the DPL alliance would become a costly choice for companies whose products might infringe patents. The bigger the DPL pool gets, the more valuable it becomes to its members. The more aggressive the Fair Trolls are, the better for the cause."

5 of 113 comments (clear)

  1. There is no such thing as a fair.... by 3seas · · Score: 3, Insightful

    ...software patent. So there can't be a thing called a fair patent troll regarding software.
    Maybe on non software patents.

    All software patents are acts of fraud and public deception.

    Software is not of patentable matter

    1. Re:There is no such thing as a fair.... by Sir_Lewk · · Score: 3, Insightful

      The existence of MPEG-LA demonstrates that under the current official interpretation of the law, software patents do exist.

      However, the existence of MPEG-LA does not demonstrate that software patents should exist under a reasonable interpretatoin of the law.

      --
      "linux is just DOS with a UNIX like syntax" -- Galactic Dominator (944134)
  2. No effect on NPE's by micheas · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The big rewards lately have gone to Non-practicing entities. Those with no products. AKA Patent Trolls.

    This provides no relief against someone that has no products.

    --
    Work bio at MMWD
  3. Re:Problem by Tekfactory · · Score: 3, Insightful

    In what way could for-profit patent holders get the laws changed such that not-for-profit patent holders can't use the same laws to bully them back?

    Many of the for-profit patent holders that actually make things besides patents have a vested interest in keeping the system of offense and defense balanced.

    For example if patent offense is too powered some no-name entity or shell corporation (SCO) could bring huge suits against IBM and win. IBM wouldn't like that. If patent defense were too strong IBM couldn't use its huge arsenal of patents against its competitors.

    So there are some reasonably powerful entities out there that will do the right thing (not screw with patent law) out of self interest. IBM, Apple, Google, Microsoft will outspend any Patent Troll out there to maintain the current balance of terror.

  4. Re:No such thing as a fair gun by spun · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Um, yeah, see, the thing is: your method has not worked. Demonstrably has not worked. So I'm ready to try something new, you go on doing what hasn't worked. Or did I miss something, and software patents are no longer an issue?

    --
    - None can love freedom heartily, but good men; the rest love not freedom, but license. -- John Milton