Pegasus Wireless Innovation LLC has filed its first litigation over patents developed by KT Corporation, suing AT&T (AT&T Mobility, New Cingular Wireless, Cricket Wireless) (2:23-cv-00638), Deutsche Telekom (Sprint, T-Mobile) (2:23-cv-00639), and Verizon (TracFone Wireless, Verizon Wireless) (2:23-cv-00640) in the Eastern District of Texas over 11 of them. The plaintiff pleads that it entered into an “Exclusive License Agreement” with KT but that KT also “transferred to Pegasus all substantial rights in the Asserted Patents”, which Pegasus pleads “were incorporated into and are essential to the 4G/LTE and 5G standards”. The accused products are defined to be “mobile devices identified as supporting 4G/LTE and/or 5G, meaning that they communicate in accordance with, at a minimum, 3GPP Releases 8–15”.

The plaintiff pleads that its “Exclusive License Agreement” with KT is dated on September 7, 2022 and that it covers the 11 patents now in suit (9,894,644; 10,009,161; 10,181,931; 10,594,460; 10,616,932; 10,638,463; 10,721,118; 11,219,000; 11,405,942; 11,540,272; 11,627,631). The document filed with the USPTO to substantiate the transfer of rights (with respect to over 90 patent assets) is dated December 23, 2022. Pegasus alleges that it sent separate December 16, 2022 letters to the defendants concerning its portfolio, that negotiations occurred over the past year, and that no agreement for a FRAND (“fair, reasonable, and nondiscriminatory) license has been reached, prompting the current lawsuits.

The new complaints lean heavily on KT’s history, of “actively contribut[ing] to the development of advanced telecommunications platforms including 4G/LTE and 5G”, of “participat[ing] in dozens of meetings with standard-setting organizations to help standardize wireless technology, including 4G/LTE and 5G”. Pegasus pleads that “KT has declared over 720 patent families as essential to wireless telecommunications standards to the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (‘ETSI’)”. It further notes (repeatedly) that KT “holds more than 3,000 worldwide patents and patent applications related to wireless technology”.

KT has transferred patent assets to a US NPE in the past. In late 2020, it moved roughly 40 patents to Golden Eye Technologies LLC, an entity operating under the umbrella of monetization firm Harfang IP Investment Corp. Harfang IP characterizes this portfolio as relating to four technology areas: “4G/5G cellular technologies”, “Wi-Fi Passpoint technologies”, “Wi-Fi HaLow (IEEE 802.11ah) technologies”, and “[l]ocation-based services in a Wi-Fi environment”. Golden Eye has yet to file suit over its received assets in the US.

Pegasus was formed in Virginia in August 2022, with Yeasun "Eric" Yoon of Capitol IP Law Group, PLLC as its CEO. On social media, Yoon holds himself out as having served as a “Patent Attorney / Managing Director” with Capitol IP Law Group since October 2019; his prior positions include "Head of Intellectual Property Department" with NHN (from April 2009 through March 2012), "Director of Patent & Law Group" with Seoul Semiconductor (from September 2007 through April 2009), and "Senior Patent Engineer" with Samsung Electronics (from January 1995 through September 2007).

Susman Godfrey L.L.P. represents Pegasus Wireless Innovation. 12/29, Eastern District of Texas.