Alcatel bought Lucent, the rump of the fabled Bell Labs, in 2006. The promise of economies of scale, market power, and R&D firepower never amounted to much. But Lucent has a rich patent portfolio, and Alcatel-Lucent has been an aggressive asserter of its portfolio. Now Alcatel is trimming the fat to the bone, including paring R&D away from "mature" technologies, and relying more on outside partnerships to squeeze new technology bang for the buck. Alcatel has become a feebler company, less likely to roll the bones on the sport of kings unless the dice are hot.

Nortel Networks was the pride of Canada's high technology. At the turn of the decade it boasted a market value of $250 billion, when speculators figured it could fill the bill for overestimated demand for fiber-optic networks. The bubble burst in 2000, and Nortel has never gotten back on its feet. Nortel posted a $3.5 billion loss last quarter, and faces delisting from the New York Stock Exchange if its share prices doesn't crawl above a $1 a share, having lost 97% of its value this year. Shares are now 40 cents a pop. Nortel used to throw its patent weight around, and if it doesn't turn itself into a patent holding company, it may sell its patents for a last hurrah before finishing flushing itself down the corporate toilet.

Many other once-innovative computer-tech companies are sliding downhill fast, including Motorola, which just had its credit rating shoved into junk territory. Motorola is sitting on a portfolio of over 10,000 U.S. patents.

This recession is going to be long and hard, and it's likely to shake loose many a pretty patent portfolio. A lot of patents are going to be found in the bargain bin in the coming months.