Way back in the day there were some MIPS patents that only covered a few instructions so people would build not-quite-MIPS clone CPUs without paying any royalties.
sheesh, patent https://patents.google.com/patent/US4814976A/en is a real "gem"
but its probably a good example: faulty patent (later invalidated) to do something obvious
MIPS sues a company that doesn't even implement the odd instructions because it traps them, allowing a possibility of emulation.
there's literally no case here
just to sue them into oblivion and squish them with superior cash resources. and then to get squished by ARM because they weren't paying attention.
it's like a dark fairy tale. i hate corporate lawyers.
1. Little companies don't sue big companies. No need. Startups exist because they have something new and move faster. 2. Big companies don't sue little companies. Too little money, it would look anticompetitive to the gov't, and most startups fail, anyway. 3. Medium companies sue little companies when they start taking away prime customers.
ARM sued Picoturbo and they settled. Lexra chose to fight MIPS. Lexra and MIPS hurt each other. That gave ARM the opportunity to dominate the industry.
On an unrelated topic, readers looking for concise basic info on patenting that your attorney might not mention might enjoy. https://www.probell.com/patents