I always thought patents were there to protect against such attacks, a balance of awe and destruction. But who the heck was stupid enough to start that? Seriously, replacing development and business operations by law suites only will get you so far.
Maybe I should switch careers and become a patent lawyer!
Not even remotely. The damage so far is measured in legal expenses (a few million dollars, chump change), and headlines. They can stop at any second, and can in fact reach some licensing agreement that would make both stronger (MS because their are now immune, Motorola because they can go on to other fish with the precedent that "Microsoft settled because our patents are so strong. You want to fight with us?").
When you start throwing nukes around, you cannot fix the damage so quickly, and you definitely don't come out stronger.
> Seriously, replacing development and business operations by law suites only will get you so far.
far enough for 99% of the companies out there, unfortunately. They are in the business for the money, not technology advancement, or the betterment of mankind.
> Maybe I should switch careers and become a patent lawyer!
Selling your own soul can produce good income, but potentially comes with the hefty price tag of losing your soul.