RPX Corporation
RPX Corporation is a private patent risk management firm operating a defensive acquisition network of 290+ technology companies, offering patent intelligence via its Empower SaaS platform, defensive acquisition, insurance, and patent transaction services to enterprise technology firms facing litigation exposure.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What RPX Corporation does
RPX Corporation is a privately held patent risk management company founded in 2008 and headquartered in San Francisco. It pioneered the defensive patent acquisition model, operating a membership-based network of 290+ technology companies. Members pool resources to acquire patents before they become litigation threats, with RPX having spent over $5.5 billion to acquire more than 260,000 patent assets and achieving 2,600+ litigation dismissals. The company monetizes through three primary streams: annual network membership subscriptions (recurring), defensive patent acquisition and licensing transactions (one-time license), and the RPX Empower SaaS platform (subscription), with additional services including insurance and patent sales.
The company's technology backbone is RPX Empower, a proprietary cloud-based patent intelligence platform launched in April 2024, which provides portfolio assessment, litigation intelligence, license management, prior art searches, PTAB analytics, and a SEP Explorer module. The platform is built on what the company describes as the industry's most extensive proprietary database on patents and patent litigation, supporting end-to-end IP strategy workflows. The Patent Quality Initiative complements this with prior art searches (2,820+ launched, 840+ reports published) and validity challenges through inter partes reviews (730+ PTAB petitions citing RPX-identified prior art). Recent strategic integrations with Patlytics and IPRally point to ecosystem buildout.
RPX serves enterprise technology companies facing patent infringement exposure, patent sellers seeking efficient monetization, and IP professionals needing market intelligence. Go-to-market is sales-led with direct enterprise engagement and a self-serve component for RPX Empower. The company maintains global operations with offices in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Tokyo (regional HQ for Asia), and Taipei, and is expanding into Europe with a dedicated VP appointment in March 2026. RPX was previously public on NASDAQ under ticker RPXC before being taken private; no current external ownership or investor composition is disclosed in available materials.
RPX Corporation firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- RPX Corporation
- Legal name
- RPX Corporation
- Website
- https://rpxcorp.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- RPX Corporation is a private patent risk management firm operating a defensive acquisition network of 290+ technology companies, offering patent intelligence via its Empower SaaS platform, defensive acquisition, insurance, and patent transaction services to enterprise technology firms facing litigation exposure.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where RPX Corporation is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
RPX Corporation business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Network Membership Fees: RPX operates a membership-based model where companies pay fees to join the defensive acquisition network, gaining access to patent risk mitigation services and avoiding costly litigation.
- Patent Acquisition and Licensing: RPX defensively acquires patent rights and licenses them to members, having spent over $5.5 billion to date acquiring more than 260,000 patent assets. Sellers receive fair market price with fast cash payments typically within 90 days.
- RPX Empower SaaS Platform: Cloud-based platform providing patent intelligence, analytics, and market data. Offered as paid accounts with subscription or non-subscription-based features.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Membership-based access to RPX Network |
| Subscription | Monthly | RPX Empower Paid Accounts |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels7 records
RPX Corporation product offering
Product offeringCore offering
RPX Corporation provides patent risk management through a membership-based defensive patent acquisition network (the RPX Network), a cloud-based patent market intelligence SaaS platform (RPX Empower), patent transaction services (Patent Sales), and a Patent Quality Initiative delivering prior art searches and validity challenges. Enterprise technology companies pay membership and licensing fees to share in collectively acquired patent rights and gain access to data-driven IP risk tooling.
Product overview
RPX Corporation offers a comprehensive patent risk management platform comprising multiple integrated solutions. The core platform includes: (1) The RPX Network - a defensive patent acquisition network; (2) RPX Empower - a cloud-based patent market intelligence platform; (3) Patent Sales - for efficient patent transactions; and (4) the Patent Quality Initiative - featuring prior art searches and validity challenges. An insurance services module is also available. The company has spent over $5.5 billion acquiring more than 260,000 patent assets and has helped members avoid over $8 billion in legal and settlement costs.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- RPX Empower: Proprietary cloud-based patent market intelligence platform offering portfolio assessment, litigation intelligence, license management, and technical patent analysis workflows.
- RPX Network
- Patent Sales
- Patent Quality Initiative
- RPX Market Analytics
Products and services
- RPX Network Defensive patent acquisition network that prevents or ends patent litigation by acquiring patent rights before they become costly problems for member clients. The network has prevented thousands of lawsuits, achieved over 2,600 dismissals, and saved members over $8 billion in avoided costs.
- RPX Empower Cloud-based patent market intelligence platform offering portfolio assessment, litigation intelligence, license management, prior art searches, PTAB analytics, and SEP explorer functionality powered by the most extensive data on patents and patent litigation.
- Patent Sales Fast, fair, and efficient patent transaction service where RPX acts as one of the largest patent buyers, having spent over $5.5 billion to defensively acquire more than 260,000 patent assets. Offers sellers fair market price with cash payments within 90 days.
- Patent Quality Initiative Program designed to deter sub-standard patent assertions and invalidate low-quality patents through prior art searches and validity challenges (IPRs). Includes over 2,820 prior art searches launched, 840+ prior art search reports published, and 730+ PTAB petitions citing prior art from RPX reports.
- RPX Insurance Insurance services offered alongside the RPX platform providing confidential insurance application handling for members to further mitigate patent litigation exposure.
Quantifiable outcome
- Over $8 billion in avoided legal and settlement costs for members
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use RPX Corporation
Customer profileNamed customers2 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
RPX Corporation technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration1 record
Feature5 records
RPX Corporation partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and notable.
- IPRallycoreStrategic collaboration announced to enhance platform capabilities through integration of complementary patent intelligence technologies.
- PatlyticscoreStrategic partnership integrating RPX Empower with Patlytics patent workflow platform. Initial integration enables seamless cross-linking allowing users to move between portfolio assessment, litigation intelligence, license management, and technical patent analysis without context switching. Both companies are exploring further integrations combining RPX's patent data with Patlytics' AI-powered workflows.
- FractuscorePatent licensing agreement with Barcelona-based antenna technology company Fractus to expand U.S. connected safety device licensee base. Agreement enables RPX members to access Fractus's multiband antenna technology through a single, efficient, non-contentious negotiation process.
- Intellectual VenturesmajorLandmark licensing deal with Intellectual Ventures, one of the largest patent assertion entities, providing members access to extensive patent portfolio.
- Conversant Wireless Licensing S.à r.l.notableLicensing transaction announced with Conversant Wireless Licensing for patent licensing transaction.
- Thomson Licensing SAS and Technicolor SAnotableLicensing transaction announced with Thomson Licensing SAS and Technicolor SA.
- Excalibur IPnotableLicensing transaction announced with Excalibur IP.
- SisvelmajorMajor Wi-Fi SEP licensing deal with Sisvel creating template for industry-saving transactions. SEP license with Sisvel identified as significant development in standard essential patent licensing.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
RPX Corporation competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Questel (Orbit Intelligence): Global IP service provider offering Orbit Intelligence for patent search, analytics, and IP management; competes directly with RPX Empower on patent intelligence, watch, and competitive monitoring workflows.
- Anaqua: Leading IP management software platform providing patent portfolio management, annuity payments, and IP analytics to enterprises and law firms — competing with RPX Empower on the IP software side though without the defensive acquisition business.
- Intellectual Ventures: One of the world's largest patent holders and a former patent assertion entity that has shifted toward licensing; RPX landmark deal with IV in 2021 shows direct overlap on the transaction side despite IV's much larger portfolio and broader invention funding heritage.
- Clarivate (formerly CPA Global): Major IP intelligence and patent analytics provider (Derwent, CompuMark, MarkMonitor) with overlapping patent search, prior art, and portfolio assessment capabilities relative to RPX Empower.
- LexisNexis PatentAdvisor: Patent analytics platform from LexisNexis focused on patent examiner behavior, prosecution analytics, and litigation intelligence — overlapping with RPX Empower's PTAB Analytics and Litigation Intelligence modules.
Emerging players
- Patlytics: AI-native patent workflow platform for IP attorneys; announced strategic integration partnership with RPX in 2026, representing a complementary/competing overlay for AI-driven portfolio assessment and prior art workflows that RPX Empower users already access.
- PatSnap: AI-powered patent and innovation intelligence platform competing with RPX Empower on analytics, prior art, and competitive intelligence, with stronger machine-learning positioning for tech-forward IP teams.
Direct peers
- LOT Network: Defensive patent pool providing members with licensing rights if a member's patent is acquired by a patent assertion entity, conceptually parallel to RPX's defensive acquisition network and targeting similar enterprise technology members.
- Allied Security Trust (AST): Bipartisan defensive patent acquisition consortium formed by major tech companies to buy patents outside the courtroom; competes head-to-head with RPX Network on syndicated defensive acquisitions for enterprise technology members.
- Unified Patents: Direct competitor in defensive patent acquisition and patent risk management, operating a membership-based model similar to RPX Network with focus on technology company members and PTAB-based validity challenges.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
RPX Corporation social profiles
Digital presenceRPX Corporation compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
RPX Corporation financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
RPX Corporation leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles15 records
RPX Corporation subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries1 record
RPX Corporation funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors3 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
RPX Corporation M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A3 records
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about RPX Corporation
What does RPX Corporation do?
RPX Corporation provides patent risk management through a membership-based defensive patent acquisition network (the RPX Network), a cloud-based patent market intelligence SaaS platform (RPX Empower), patent transaction services (Patent Sales), and a Patent Quality Initiative delivering prior art searches and validity challenges. Enterprise technology companies pay membership and licensing fees to share in collectively acquired patent rights and gain access to data-driven IP risk tooling.
Is RPX Corporation a public or private company?
RPX Corporation is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was RPX Corporation founded?
RPX Corporation was founded in 2008. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is RPX Corporation based?
RPX Corporation is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does RPX Corporation make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Network Membership Fees are the primary driver. The others are patent Acquisition and Licensing and RPX Empower SaaS Platform.
Who are RPX Corporation's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Questel (Orbit Intelligence), Anaqua, Intellectual Ventures, Clarivate (formerly CPA Global) and LexisNexis PatentAdvisor. Emerging players are Patlytics and PatSnap. Direct peers are LOT Network, Allied Security Trust (AST) and Unified Patents.
Does RPX Corporation have an API?
No public API is recorded for RPX Corporation.