Princeps Secundus, LLC

LG and LG Electronics (1:20-cv-00683) have become the latest defendants in the rebooted campaign of Princeps Secundus LLC over a single “universal keyboard” patent. Cases against Alphabet (Google), Apple, ASUSTek, Lenovo (Motorola Mobility), and Samsung are already active in the campaign, with Princeps targeting the defendants’ provision of mobile devices—smartphones, tablets, and/or others (e.g., Apple’s iPod)—with keyboard setup and selection features that allow users to switch between keyboards in various languages and/or a menu of emojis.

Princeps Secundus LLC has filed suit against Lenovo (Motorola Mobility) (1:20-cv-00318) in the Northern District of Illinois, completing the shift of the entire campaign out of Delaware, where initial cases were filed against Motorola Mobility, as well as Alphabet (Google) and Apple last summer. The initial plaintiff, Princeps Interface Technologies LLC (PIT), transferred the asserted keyboard patent to Princeps Secundus after those initial cases were filed—and dismissed without prejudice. Targeted throughout has been the defendants’ provision of mobile devices—smartphones, tablets, and/or others (e.g., Apple’s iPod)—with keyboard setup and selection features that allow users to switch between keyboards in various languages and/or a menu of emojis.

“Princeps” is apparently a Latin word meaning “one that is first”, making apt the name of the new plaintiff—Princeps Secundus LLC—to take over the campaign that Princeps Interface Technologies LLC (PIT) tried to launch last summer. Princeps Secundus has filed its first affirmative cases in the reboot, suing ASUSTek (5:20-cv-00205) and Samsung (3:20-cv-00201) in the Northern District of California. The suits join declaratory judgment actions there, one filed by each of Alphabet (Google) and Apple, in which amended complaints were filed to add Princeps Secundus as a defendant after the recordation of a set of November 2019 assignments moving the asserted “universal keyboard” patent to Princeps Secundus from PIT.