[Foy]

Playing devil's advocate here, but in his defense, he DOES usually answer the questions in the first sentence or two but then goes on to support his point of view as a whole in the next paragraph or two.

(Keep in mind I do not support Patent Trolling, or most software patents at all, for that matter.)

From what I can see, Myhrvold views himself as a 21st century Robin Hood. He's stealing from the rich tech industry and giving to... well.. preparing to give to the poor.

In his answer on why he doesn't become more transparent with his patents he answer partly with: "The truth of the matter is that big technology companies use patents as a strategic tool." I think that is the whole answer to the question. For his company, patents are used to strategically used to acquire funds for "God's work".

Of course, this begs the question, is Myhrvold really focused on "the good of the world" or personal gain?