The Security Industry Association on Thursday announced that it has sent letters to leaders in both the House and Senate pushing them to take action to stop patent trolling.
Specifically, SIA has called upon the House to pass the Innovation Act (H.R. 9), which is bipartisan legislation aimed at increasing accountability on patent litigation and to stop patent trolling. In the Senate, SIA has asked lawmakers to take action on the Protection American Talent and Entrepreneurship (PATENT) Act (S. 1137), which would also increase accountability while thwarting patent trolls.
Patent trolls are defined as companies or individuals that threaten businesses with lawsuits based on vague or overly broad patents in an effort to collect money from settlements. Security product manufacturers spend millions of dollars each year defending against frivolous patent litigation.
“The security industry invests considerable time, research and development and human capital into developing a wide range of cutting-edge security solutions offered through their trusted channel partners into various markets. The aggressive efforts of patent trolls are a significant threat to investment in the next generation of security products,” said Jake Parker, SIA director of government relations.
The companion bills also would introduce important protections for end users of security technology, who may be targeted for patent infringement based simply on a product they chose to purchase. The “customer stay” provision would allow the stay of an infringement case against an end user while the manufacturer of the product litigates the alleged infringement. This prevents duplicative lawsuits from clogging federal court dockets and provides relief for American businesses that have been unfairly targeted.
“Ultimately, this act seeks to improve transparency related to the maintenance of patent information and the way patent ownership is established and defended. Requiring parties to do a bit of due diligence up front before filing an infringement suit is just plain common sense. We believe this will instill greater faith in business transactions conducted between and within numerous private industries, which helps grow the economy and promote job growth,” SIA wrote of both bills.
The House Judiciary Committee and Senate Judiciary Committee each have approved their respective bills, and SIA urges the full respective chambers to take up and pass the legislation. SIA is part of the coalition United for Patent Reform, which includes nearly 130 trade associations and companies fighting to restore integrity to the nation’s patent system.
