This American Life, a wonderful weekly radio show returned to the patent system last week with the episode "When Patents Attack....Part Two!". The program includes interviews with Nathan Myhrvold and Peter Detkin, both founders of Intellectual Ventures. Peter Detkin explains how he came up with now-famous term "patent troll" when he was at Intel (it was inspired by his daughter's toys) and the reporters attempt to track down information about East Texas patent-owning companies. The podcast also examines the litigation brought by Personal Audio LLC against Adam Carolla and the Discovery Channel’s podcasting arm. While the reporting has a decidedly anti-patent troll slant and tends to overly simplify some very complex issues, it is entertaining and worth a listen.
You can read the response of Intellectual Ventures to the podcast here.
You can read the response of Intellectual Ventures to the podcast here.