> Their business model is to buy cheap patents from people who just do pure research. Then they go and sue the pants off people who do real work and make a honest living by doing things that make real products.
Doing pure research isn't making an honest living?
People doing research make news. These guys make money. Let me know when you've heard of one of their groundbreaking discoveries that wasn't simply purchased from some professor somewhere.
Why is it bad to make money off of something purchased from a professor?
After all, if one can't make money off of a thing purchased from a professor, there's no reason to buy said thing from a professor. Is it wrong for professors to make money from what they invent? In many cases, the school also makes money. Is that wrong?
Or, is it just wrong for middlemen to buy and resell?
In other words, professors should only license to end users.
... this is getting confusing. Isn't Intellectual Ventures your run-of-the-mill patent troll? Don't invent anything worthwhile, acquire patents, sue companies that get stuff done?...
Doing pure research isn't making an honest living?