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Jim Oberweis on Technology |
Oberweis: What has been a great area in the last couple years are folks buying and selling patents. We own a company called Acacia Technology that goes to companies, buys patents or licenses patents, and then sues to enforce them or license them to those that are infringing.
Q: Aren't these just bloodsuckers, leeches just trolling and being a bane to everybody?
Oberweis: Some have said that. First of all, they're profitable leeches, if you take that connotation. But I would say no. They do fulfill a niche, and here's the niche. XYZ company is a small company, they do business with Microsoft, Microsoft infringes their patent. And if they decided to sue Microsoft, Microsoft buries them in paperwork for the next 20 years. I am a strong believer that intellectual property rights need to be protected. It's Acacia's business, and they help companies in that situation because that's their sole business.