Patent Law

Cycling

By Gary Odom and Jordan Kuhn

Patents trend a bit counter-cyclical to the business cycle. While patent holders file suits good times or bad, companies focus on alternative revenue streams as product sales slow. Companies feeling economic pinch scrounge for profitable prospects, and out pop patent suits.

Fulbright & Jaworski, using a link to their slothful web server that requires you to register to get the damn thing, have released their 2008 Litigation Trends Survey. From the press release -

Patent Defense - One-third of U.S. companies, regardless of industry type, had at least one patent infringement claim filed against them in the past three years. For billion-dollar respondents, the level rose to just under one-half, and for invention-rich tech firms, the ratio was higher still at 52%. Manufacturers also saw a high rate of patent claims at 52%, including 2% reporting more than 50 cases since 2005. A notable 12% of below-$100 million companies have been hit with at least one patent infringement claim during that period.

Patent Offense - Equally worth noting, 21% of U.S. companies initiated at least one patent action in the last three years, including 39% for billion-dollar firms.

Patent Volume - The great majority of companies (83%) expect no near-term change in the volume of patent suits. That leaves 12% of respondents expecting an increase of patent cases and 5% of participants expecting a decline.

Full post as published by The Patent Prospector on October 15, 2008 (boomark / email).