1. A guy comes up with something brilliant and shows his friends.

2. One of his friends runs off and pitches the idea to another guy, who co-opts it and decides to build a business around it. They figure the original guy had a neat idea, but since "they are the ones doing the hard work of building a business," they don't have to include the original guy in their team; plus, they are concerned he would ask for too much equity/cash.

3. The company is formed, launched, announces the product. The original guy has a "WTF" moment and can't believe his friend would screw him over that way. He reaches out to the company. Meanwhile, the third guy (meaning, the flashy CEO who co-opted the technology from the guy who stole the idea) passes off the idea as his own, brilliant invention. The press is more than happy to comply.

4. The company drags its heels on settling with the original guy. Some of the company's hotshot VCs decide that this is a situation where the guy can be easily paid off, especially since the hotshot CEO will create such a wildly successful venture (with their help, of course -- they too have joined in the creation myth of the company). Meanwhile, the original guy is getting pissed that this idiot CEO is getting all of this press as the "inventor." This bothers him far more than the money.

Now once you reach this point, one of two things happens. Either the company raises money / dilutes shareholders to pay the guy off, or a large savvy competitor buys out the inventor and royally fucks the company's chances of executing. The company will of course scream "patent troll" and people on forums such as this will agree; sometimes the larger competitor will extract a satisfyingly large settlement, but sometimes the ensuing litigation will literally cripple/kill the company.

Personally, I find this whole situation very disappointing. I doubt the press will speak much of this, as they are so desperate for an inside scoop from Jack.

All of these guys are hypocrites; when will you guys realize this? Oh, and that gas-guzzling 767 with the private shower is being used to "create good in places like Africa" (or whatever they had said), right?