Thanks for sharing your thoughts. They have merit and are both respected and appreciated.

That said, I worked in the past for small startup companies that successfully negotiated royalty bearing licenses with major household name players and unfortunately it was not all accomplished outside of the courhouse but some of it was.

A difference (perhaps a big difference) was that these were hardware and not software companies but the IP was still what was being paid for and it enabled users to make better product more cost effectively.

Circling back to the publication discussion earlier. It used to be that the USPTO published pending applications automatically 18 months after filing unless the patentee asked for it not to be. We were the only country to do so I believe. Those from big companies in the US and other countries eagerly awaited publication news every Thursday so they could mine those published applications for new ideas to write blocking patents of thier own. Used to be in the US it was first to invent but in keeping with the rest of the world it is now first to file and puts a heavy burden on the independant inventors everywhere.