Noting that mitigating the risks associated with patent liability calls for a market-based patent strategy, Aon Risk Solutions, the global risk management business of Aon plc, announced today it will distribute exclusively non-practicing entity patent litigation insurance from RPX Corporation, the leading provider of patent risk management solutions, to help small- and medium-sized technology clients better manage and mitigate patent risk.“Aon recognized that its clients were in need of a comprehensive solution and partnered with RPX to provide access to unmatched patent risk management strategies,” said Shawn Ram, managing director and Technology Practice leader for Aon Risk Solutions. “RPX and Aon came together to build this insurance offering, which will empower results for small- to medium-sized businesses experiencing increased non-practicing entity attention and risk.”
“Through its risk consulting expertise, access to global markets and now its partnership with RPX, Aon is helping clients close the patent risk gap,” added Ram.
Recent RPX research attributes this increase to the rising number of patent infringement lawsuits filed by non-practicing entities, commonly known as NPEs, which nearly tripled in size from approximately 500 in 2005 to more than 1,300 in 2011. The total cost for responding to NPE litigation in 2011 was $29 billion, reflecting a 400+ percent increase from 2005, according to a recent study by James Bessen and Michael Meurer of the Boston University School of Law.
"NPE patent litigation is disruptive and costly, disproportionately impacting small- and medium-sized enterprises," said John A. Amster, CEO of RPX. "We are thrilled to work with Aon, the leader of risk solutions, to bring this important offering to the marketplace. Our ability to collect, aggregate and analyze large amounts of often-proprietary patent market data, coupled with our core defensive patent acquisition service, allows us to provide a comprehensive risk reduction offering that meets the needs of smaller companies."
The service aims to limit severity risk and is complemented by RPX’s core defensive patent acquisition service, which limits frequency risk by continually acquiring and clearing high-risk patents – both from the open market and out of litigations.