Big Tech have used power in Washington to only pass policies that benefit them.

But Big Tech—eager to entrench its dominance—has used its clout in Washington to systematically attack the U.S. patent system and disadvantage smaller rivals.

Legislative changes, as well as a number of troubling Supreme Court rulings, have made it more difficult to obtain, defend and enforce patents. For instance, the America Invents Act, passed by Congress in 2011, created a new review process for the patent office. This process usually adds years of delay and makes it considerably more costly to defend one's patents, and increases the risk of losing intellectual property rights—all under lower standards than applied in court.

In addition, recent Supreme Court decisions in cases like Bilski v. Kappos, Mayo Collaborative Services v. Prometheus Laboratories and Alice v. CLS Bank International created enormous uncertainty over what kinds of inventions are even eligible for a patent, and wholly excluded medical diagnostic methods, no matter how useful.

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CARDIFF, UNITED KINGDOM - MAY 29: A closeup of a Google Home smart device in a retail store on May 29, 2019 in Cardiff, United Kingdom. MATTHEW HORWOOD/GETTY IMAGES

All of this has generated a windfall for America's largest tech companies. After all, if it's too difficult—or too expensive—for small operations to avail themselves of their patent rights, then Big Tech firms can help themselves to promising innovations without paying inventors or worrying about legal consequences.