Startups v/s Patent Trolls

INTRODUCTION

Startups are playing a significant part in modernization and development of technology while at the same time creating jobs. However, the growth of secondary markets for patents and the multiplication of patent assertion entities (PAEs) beginning in the early 21^st century has made the patent ecosystem a challenging environment for startups to navigate. Startups are not usually established by attorneys, so patent law is not typically a front-line issue for them. Though there is a greater realization about the importance of patents and patent security is now on the top 10 list of things for startups to focus on, the critical urgency on the issue is still a miss. In a recent survey¹ it was found that even though gigantic organizations are dictating patent headlines, most exceptional perpetrators to troll suits are small-scale. Businesses with fewer than $100M yearly proceeds represent at least 66% of exclusive respondents to troll suits and at least 55% of