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Patent ambush

Revision as of 20:16, 26 September 2011 by Ciaran (talk | contribs) (==Other definition: submarine patents in the USA== Until 1995, the US patent system contained a loophole which allowed patent applicants to keep their applications secret for many years by repeatedl)

Patent ambush is where a patent holder waits until a technology becomes popular, or until a company becomes rich, before launching an unexpected patent suit. The patents used in a patent ambush are often called "submarine patents" (although this term's original meaning was only for a certain type of ambush).

This problem exists in all patentable domains but it is particularly unjust in the case of software because the use of software is essential to almost every company, and distribution and development of software is very common (keeping in mind that developing a website is software development).

In some countries, the non-use of a patent could give a defence, known as laches, to alleged infringers.

Other definition: submarine patents in the USA

Until 1995, the US patent system contained a loophole which allowed patent applicants to keep their applications secret for many years by repeatedly filing modifications. These patents would then "surface" and product developers would be surprised with law suits over patents they never even had the possibility to search for or read.

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