Dive Brief:

• A study by Patent Freedom, a firm helping businesses strategize against Patent Assertion Entities (PAEs) or so-called “patent trolls,” finds that retailers will be the most targeted type of business in patent-based lawsuits this year.

• Some 136 retailers have already been targeted in 264 lawsuits so far this year, making retail like last year the most targeted sector again this year, more so than electronics or software companies.

• Most patent troll suits against retailers involve technology used in both brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce.

Dive Insight:

One theory about why so-called patent trolls are targeting the retail sector so heavily is that the entities are trying to capitalize on retailers’ relative flat-footedness on the issue.

Many companies settle these patent-infringement lawsuits, not because they have any merit, but because litigation is time-consuming and expensive. Retailers may want to follow the example of electronics e-retailer Newegg, which has become something of a hero in the fight against patent trolls by refusing to settle with them, and thereby frequently prevailing against them inside and outside the courtroom.