Vindolor, LLC has launched a new litigation campaign, filing four separate suits against retailers Buc-ee’s (6:18-cv-00104), Euromarket Designs (d/b/a Crate & Barrel) (6:18-cv-00105), Retail Services & Systems (d/b/a Total Wine & More) (6:18-cv-00108), and Spec’s Family Partners (d/b/a Spec’s Wine, Spirits & Finer Foods) (6:18-cv-00107) over their use of NFC-enabled point-of-sale terminals offering contactless payments. The NPE alleges infringement through the accused terminals’ compatibility with “Microsoft Wallet, Wells Fargo Wallet, Masterpass, Samsung Pay, Android Pay, Google Pay, Google Wallet, Apple Pay, and PayPal mobile” as used with various Android, iOS, and/or Windows smartphones and related mobile apps.

The Patent Trial and Appeal Board saw the filing of petitions against a host of publicly traded NPEs in February, including Acacia Research Corporation, Pendrell Corporation, Wi-LAN Inc. (WiLAN), and Xperi Corporation (f/k/a Tessera Holding Corporation), with challenges also filed in campaigns waged by Intellectual Ventures LLC (IV); IP Bridge, Inc.; Uniloc Corporation Pty. Limited; and Monument Patent Holdings, LLC.

In the first half of May 2016, RPX saw nine patent transfers to NPEs recorded with the USPTO. At least three of those transactions involved patents that have already been asserted in litigation against operating companies.

Customedia Technologies, L.L.C., an inventor-controlled NPE, filed suit against DISH Network (2:16-cv-00129) asserting four related patents (7,840,437; 8,719,090; 8,955,029; 9,053,494). The patents generally concern targeted multimedia content delivery, including delivery of advertising customized by end user. The complaint accuses DISH Network of infringement through provision of a whole suite of satellite services and set-top boxes.