Patent Litigation and the Internet

Patent infringement litigation has not only increased dramatically in frequency over the past few decades,1 but also has also seen striking growth in both stakes and cost.2 Although a relatively rich literature has added much to our understanding of the nature, causes, and consequences of patent litigation during the past two decades,3 many interesting questions remain inadequately addressed. The nuances of and trends in patent litigation in different technology fields and industries, for example, are still understudied.4 Litigation of patents on new technologies has likewise received a dearth of attention. Here we seek to help begin filling these gaps by empirically analyzing the phenomenon in a very particular context: the litigation of Internet patents. In particular, we study litigation of patents on Internet business processes issued during the first few years in which such patents were granted, and determine whether it differs in meaningful ways from litigation of patents in other fields