As many of you know, Apple has gone a little patent-happy in recent years, or more specifically, since the iPhone launch. That all came to be because of a lawsuit in which Apple lost $100 million to a company named Creative Technologies over the iPod. According to the New York Times’s report, Apple engineers would have monthly “invention disclosure sessions” where a they would explain their projects currently in the works, and a lawyer would listen in to decide if it could be patented. However, even if the idea wasn’t patentable, it would still file just to try. One former Apple lawyer put it simply, “If nothing else, it prevents another company from trying to patent the idea.”

Apple has been granted over 4,100 patents since 2001. Last year, Cupertino even spent more money on filing patents than research and development. Those patents have come in handy though, as shown by Apple’s win over Samsung for over $1 billion. Apple isn’t the only one suing people either; other companies sue them and Apple will simply find something to counter-sue. The Samsung case was indeed the most notable so far though.

What do you think? Is Apple patenting too much? Should it focus more on building and developing new products? Let us know in the comments.

Via: BGR, Cult of Mac, NYT