Red Hat CEO On Patent Trolls: Just Pay Them Off

jbrodkin writes "Although Red Hat fights patent lawsuits when it deems it necessary, CEO Jim Whitehurst says it's often just better to pay the trolls to make them go away. 'When it's so little money, at some point, bluntly, it's better to settle than fight these things out,' Whitehurst said. Red Hat has been forced to pay out claims to the likes of FireStar Software and Acacia, and Whitehurst indicated Red Hat has paid off various other companies behind closed doors. 'Some of them are [public] but we often seal them in settlement,' he said."

Comments

This is

[Colourspace]

The stupidest thing I have heard a CEO say in a long time. Welcome trolls, we'll pay you to shut the fuck up.

Re:This is

[betterunixthanunix]

His job is to maximize shareholder value. If that means settling for a lower price than the cost of pursuing a court case, that is what he is going to do.

Re:This is

[increment1]

That is not the point that the original poster is referring to. What is being referred to is that if you pay off trolls, you probably shouldn't announce that you pay off trolls, or you will end up with more trolls coming at you.

This is why the comment by the CEO is being referred to as stupid, since saying something like this can only lead to more patent trolls and nothing positive for the company.

Re:This is

[eviljolly]

I have to agree. This is something you are supposed to think, but not say. Once you lose your intimidation factor, more people are likely to attack.

Rudyard Kipling said it best

[Oriumpor]

It is always a temptation to an armed and agile nation
    To call upon a neighbour and to say: --
"We invaded you last night--we are quite prepared to fight,
    Unless you pay us cash to go away."

And that is called asking for Dane-geld,
    And the people who ask it explain
That you've only to pay 'em the Dane-geld
    And then you'll get rid of the Dane!

It is always a temptation for a rich and lazy nation,
    To puff and look important and to say: --
"Though we know we should defeat you, we have not the time to meet you.
    We will therefore pay you cash to go away."

And that is called paying the Dane-geld;
    But we've proved it again and again,
That if once you have paid him the Dane-geld
    You never get rid of the Dane.

It is wrong to put temptation in the path of any nation,
    For fear they should succumb and go astray;
So when you are requested to pay up or be molested,
    You will find it better policy to say: --

"We never pay any-one Dane-geld,
    No matter how trifling the cost;
For the end of that game is oppression and shame,
    And the nation that pays it is lost!"

3 Steps Ahead?

[bill_mcgonigle]

Heh... That's opposite thinking. When you "settle" with these jokers, it's typically a friggin' dogpile on you over time- they know you'll pay out so they'll come with their hands out and threatening to sue them. LOTS of them.

Hardly "maximizing shareholder value", now is it?

Well, if it attracts hundreds or thousands of small-dollar patent gnats to Redhat, they can probably afford to absorb that blow, but they'll also be able to go to Congress and testify, "we currently have 1734 software patent lawsuits in litigation, none of which a dispassionate observer would feel have merit. This is what software patents really do, destroy innovation. It's time to end the practice."