The tech industry is notoriously competitive. Tech giants like Facebook and Google are constantly battling to gain dominance over categories, like video and mobile advertising, while startups go head-to-head to capture users’ limited attention and precious dollars.

Competition is undoubtedly a force for good in the tech industry, but sometimes rivalries needs to be put aside for the greater good. This is particularly true when it comes to the fight against patent trolls. Patent trolls will only be defeated when tech companies come together, put aside their differences and competitiveness, and help each other. It’s time to be good corporate citizens and form a collective, united front in this fight.

The Battlefield

The tech industry is a prime target of Patent Assertion Entities (PAEs), more commonly known as patent trolls. In 2015, patent troll lawsuits hit an all-time high. More than 10,000 companies have been sued at least once by a patent troll and the rates of PAE suits are growing by double-digits every year. PAEs are aggressively going after tech companies across sizes and sectors, draining over $83 billion in wealth and curbing innovation as as they go.

While many of the high-profile patent troll causes are waged against large, powerful companies like Apple and Microsoft, the reality is that small-to-medium businesses face the greatest risk. Sixty-two percent of the companies sued by trolls last year have less than $100 million in revenue and the average defendant in a PAE case makes an average of $10.1 million a year. Taking a patent case to trial costs between $2-6 million, a fee most SMBs can’t afford. Even a single legal response to a frivolous lawsuit can cost tens of thousands of dollars. Patent abusers know this and purposely price their settlement demands below the cost of defense. This is why a vast majority of defendants settle, even if the claim has no merit.

Given that small businesses account for 43 percent of high tech employment, according to a study conducted by the Small Business Administration, and that they are the primary drivers of high tech innovation, patent trolls pose a serious threat to the tech industry as a whole, not just the companies who get sued by them. Therefore, the fight against patent trolls must also be a cooperative, joint, industry-wide effort.

Strength In Numbers