Just as Congress was preparing for the reform on patent policies, the US General Accountability Office (GAO) conducted a study on NPE's and patent litigation as a part of the historic America Invents Act (AIA). The findings actually showed that it is operating companies and not NPE's that drive most patent litigation.
Some interesting details from the GAO Study:
- Only 1/5 of lawsuits are by NPE's while the rest of the majority is caused by companies which make products.
- Increase in patent litigation between 2010 and 2011 is likely explained by the anticipation of change to the US patent system.
- Patent trolls live to SUE
So if NPE's aren't the problem, what is wrong with the patent system?
The problem seems to reside within Patent Monetizing Entities, specifically software-related patents, and the fact that the PTO has not been doing enough to ensure a better quality of patents are being ensued.
Bottom line is that the GAO report finds there is no patent crisis by identity of the patent owner and rather, the crisis lies within the quality of patents.
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