> In the 1980s, when IBM accused Sun of violating seven patents, Sun examined the patents and argued that IBM didn't have a case. The reply of IBM's lawyers was "maybe you don't infringe these seven patents. But we have 10,000 U.S. patents. Do you really want us to go back to Armonk [IBM headquarters in New York] and find seven patents you do infringe? Or do you want to make this easy and just pay us $20 million?" And Sun paid out.[4]
Ban on software patent is more than warranted, only trolls themselves don't like such idea obviously.
But what also needed is persecution these patent trolls for racket like any mob racketeers. There were attempts of persecuting them this way in the past, but they should be renewed.