COVID-19 and Patent Litigation: What Happened During the Last Recession
June 17, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a sweeping negative impact on the US economy. While the patent space has seen much higher levels of infringement litigation than expected, stakeholders are looking ahead to the pandemic’s longer-term impact on such filings. Although there are many compounding factors presently affecting the patent space, including a different litigation climate compared to years prior, it is nevertheless instructive to consider how patent litigation levels changed around the time of the last major economic downturn, the financial crisis of 2008-2009.
RPX data show that NPE litigation was largely unaffected by that recession, and in fact greatly increased in the years immediately afterward, while operating company litigation temporarily dipped—but only slightly.
The present climate may also lead to more patent assets changing hands, affecting the patent marketplace and driving litigation. With many companies facing economic distress, offers from litigation funders to extend a large loan, or provide a steady stream of revenue, in exchange for monetization rights to the company’s portfolio may become more attractive. Furthermore, if bankruptcies become widespread, the patent market could see an influx of new patents, potentially exerting downward pressure on open market patent prices.
See RPX Insight for detailed, regularly updated analysis of the effects of COVID-19 on the patent space.
