Quote:
Originally Posted by Giggleton
I see, but I suppose they are similar in that they can both stop people from creating?
|
No, they aren't the same. Let me expand on JD Gumby's explanation.
The patent troll lifecycle typically begins with a startup business that has an idea, gets a patent, and gets funding to grow the business. Typical of most startup businesses, the company fails. With a bankrupt company, all of the assets are on sale for whatever they will bring. This includes office furniture and patents.
Some companies specialize in buying up patents from failed companies. Then they sue other companies to make money on the purchased patent.
I haven't read the original article and I don't know it this is specifically a case of patent trolls at work, but they are generally disliked because they don't create ideas, and they never intend to produce the item.
In the typical case, copyright is owned by the author who created the work or by the publisher who edited/produced/marketed the work. Without these copyright owners, the work wouldn't exist and that is not true of patent trolls.