Request for Help: Fill Out a Short Survey on Entrepreneurs’ Handling of Patent Demands

By Eric Goldman

While we may have some voyeuristic fun watching a high-profile patent trial like Apple v. Samsung, patent litigation isn’t always a “sport of kings.” To shed some light on these less-publicized aspects of patent enforcement, my colleague Colleen Chien [follow her at Twitter!] is conducting a survey about how small companies deal with demands by patent holders. If you work at a startup or small company, I would be so grateful if you would fill out this survey (or ask the person in your company handling patent demands to do so). Even if your company has not (yet) received a patent demand, your feedback would help. The survey is quick (2-15 minutes), and individual responses will be kept confidential unless you say otherwise. Colleen will publish the results, and I expect her report will improve the patent policy-making discussions based on what’s taking place in the patent enforcement world outside the media glare. Thanks in advance for your help.