Abstract
A large number of modern consumer focussed industries are characterised by fast paced technology driven innovations - smart phones and other computing devices, software, home audio and video technologies, automobiles, pharmaceuticals etc. being a few notable examples. Such industries are research driven and are characterised by their unique technological ecosystems. Competition within such industries is not limited to pricing and marketing strategies alone, but is driven by R&D as well, whereby new features, new variants and upgraded technology is c onstantly being introduced to attract customers (Frambach, 1993). Consequently, firms often tend to use the existing intellectual property (IP) framework within their industries as a standard tool against rivals - both for defensive and offensive purposes (Litchenber, 2002).