In Praise of Patent Plays

In his classic cyber-punk novel Neuromancer, William Gibson depicts a place called Night City as "a deranged experiment in social Darwinism, designed by a bored researcher who kept one thumb permanently on the fast forward button."

When you think about it, that's a pretty apt description of the tech side of today's economy. Things are changing so fast that whatever you're selling, it's got to be continuously better/faster/cheaper if you want to survive. Resting on your laurels is not an option.

Unless, that is, you own a patent controlling some crucial part of your industry. Then you can let the other guys fight it out while you kick back and watch your licensing fees accrue. ...