Citations:patent troll

English citations of patent troll

1. (patent law, informal, derogatory) A company, person, etc., that owns and enforces patents in an aggressive and opportunistic manner, often with no intention of marketing or promoting the subjects of the patents.
   • 2014 March 28, Robin Feldman, “Slowing the patent trolls”, in The New York Times‎^[1], New York, N.Y.: The New York Times Company, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 29 March 2014:

     Because software patents can cover vast areas of territory, they are the weapon of choice for "patent trolls": people or companies that hold patents but make no products, and bring patent-infringement lawsuits against companies that do make products, offering to settle for less than the cost of fighting the suit.