[wildjim]

I kind-of thought that was what a patent-troll did these days: get as many wide-ranging patents as possible, no matter whether they should've been granted, and use them to either batter the competition (i.e. with license fees or unending court battles) or getting your "cut" with little actual effort... ?

[pyre]

Patent trolls have traditionally been groups whose only (or just main) business/source of income comes from buying up patents and suing over them.

Today people tend to apply 'patent troll' to situations where they feel that the plaintiff is 'trolling' the defendant through the use of patent law. This is applied more-so when the patents are thought to be invalid or the business reasons for filing suit are deemed to be anti-competitive.