Arlington, Va.— The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) is unveiling the “Troll Toll,” a running tally of what patent trolls have cost the U.S. economy since the House passed the Innovation Act in December.
The Troll Toll is designed to alert lawmakers and voters that every hour the Senate delays action on strong patent reform legislation costs our country millions of dollars, according to CEA.
Michael Petricone, government affairs senior VP at CEA, said in a statement, “Each week patent trolls drain $1.5 billion from the U.S. economy, and the costs continue to skyrocket. That’s why we’ve established the ‘Troll Toll’ — a running tally of what the lack of strong patent reform legislation is costing our economy every second of every day.”
He added, “The House passed patent reform legislation with overwhelming bipartisan support, and the president promised to take swift action once Congress sends him a bill. But if the Senate waits to take action until the new Congress begins, our economy stands to lose another $54 billion to these trolls — money that won’t be spent creating new jobs or funding breakthrough technologies.”
Petricone noted, “We’re hopeful the Senate Judiciary Committee will finally move forward on its markup of a strong, common-sense patent reform bill this Thursday. But with every delay, American innovation and the U.S. economy suffer even more damage.”
CEA compiled firsthand accounts of patent-troll victims; click here to take a look.
