DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Research and Markets has announced the addition of the "Patent Licensing Companies in the Semiconductor Market" report to their offering.
Patent Licensing Companies (PLCs) are non-operating companies concentrated on creating the majority of their income from licensing patents to or litigating against operating companies suspected to infringe their patent rights. Other related terms include nonpracticing entities (NPEs), patent holding companies (PHCs), patent monetization entities (PMEs), patent assertion entities (PAEs) and Patent Trolls. PLCs commonly acquire their patents from other companies, and then monetize them via aggressive patent litigation. Some
PLCs have R&D activities in order to generate their own patents, and they monetize them by licensing.
The RPX Corporation's March 2015 report states that NPEs cost operating companies an estimated $12.2 billion in both legal fees and other legal costs and settlement or judgment amounts in 2014. Patent Licensing Companies operate in fields with high probability of patent infringement, mainly in USA, where litigation damages are much higher than in Europe or Asia. In a patent infringement action, the potential sales volume plays a major role for assessing the damage award. Thus, the PLCs come into action when the market has reached a critical size and target companies have made irreversible investments.
Patent litigation risk tends to increase as new technologies emerge, or as existing technologies combine to create new products and services. The convergence of technologies in the semiconductor field leads to an increase in patent litigation in that sector. The semiconductor industry brings together all ingredients to appeal to PLCs. These include strong consolidation, with many mergers and acquisitions (M&A), numerous patents for sale from bankrupt companies and M&A, complex patented inventions, the colossal amount of products embedding semiconductor devices, big companies, and a lot of money. All companies designing, manufacturing or marketing semiconductor-based products are potential targets for PLCs' next patent litigation.
In this report we reveal the most aggressive Patent Licensing Companies in the semiconductor field, their recent patent acquisitions, and their potential targets for future patent litigation. More than 2,880 semiconductor-related US patents have been acquired by PLCs since 2013.
Key Topics Covered:
1. Introduction
2. Methodology
3. Patent Landscape Overview
4. Patent Litigation
5. Patented Technologies Acquired By PLCs In 2013-2016
6. IP Profile Of Key Patent Licensing Companies
7. Conclusion
Companies Mentioned: Partial List
- 3M
- AT&T
- AU Optronics
- Acacia Research
- Advanced Micro Devices
- Advanced Semiconductor Engineering
- Alcatel-Lucent
- Alpha & Omega Semiconductor
- Altera
- American PCS Communications
- Amkor
- Analog Devices
- Aplus Flash Technology
- Apple
- Applied Materials
- Aptina Imaging
- Attopsemi Technology
- Avalanche Technology
- BOE Technology
- Blackberry
- Bridge Semiconductor
- Broadcom
- Canon
- Carl Zeiss
- Chipmos Technologies
- Cisco Systems
- Citizen Electronics
- Conversant IP Management
- Cordis
- Cree
- Crocus Technology
- Crossbar
- Cypress Semiconductor
- DSS Technology Management
- Dell
For more information about this report visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/hdz5cf/patent_licensing
