Accelerated Memory Tech, LLC, an entity affiliated with Atlanta-based monetization firm IP Investments Group, LLC (d/b/a IPinvestments Group), has filed a third case in its sole campaign litigating a single patent generally related to improving server performance. The latest defendant is F5 Networks (2:19-cv-00183); the new case, filed in the Western District of Washington, joins a Northern District of Georgia suit against Barracuda Networks still active after an apparent settlement in a prior case brought against Citrix (the first suit filed in this campaign, in April 2018). F5 Networks is accused of infringement through the provision of its BIG-IP Platform, which allegedly “includes services such as WebAccelerator that perform functions such as handling HTTP requests, dynamic caching, and load balancing”. Meanwhile, last month, Accelerated Memory filed its opposition to a Barracuda Networks motion challenging the patent-in-suit as invalid under Alice.

A number of notable patent assignments have been recorded with the USPTO this month, including three involving former Nero AG patents, all transferred to recently formed NPEs. Also of note was an assignment to a new NPE with possible ties to IP Investments Group, LLC.

Among the patent assignments recorded during the first week of November were multiple transfers from Intellectual Ventures LLC (IV)—two to affiliates of IP Valuation Partners LLC (d/b/a IPVal) (which currently has multiple ongoing campaigns asserting former IV patents), and one to a new NPE with an apparent connection to Cotman IP. The week also saw the recording of transactions between IQ Holdings, LLC and IPVal; Panasonic and PanOptis Equity Holdings LLC; and Microsoft and General Patent Corporation.

In early July, RPX noted the assignment of multiple patents from IQ Holdings, LLC, an affiliate of the Atlanta monetization firm IP Investments Group, LLC (d/b/a IPinvestments Group), to another affiliate, Universal Transdata, LLC. Universal Transdata has now asserted one of those patents, generally related to a mobile storage device with a retractable universal serial bus (USB) connection. The NPE accuses seven defendants of infringement through the provision of flash drives, in two venues: ADATA Technology (1:17-cv-03234), Silicon Power Computer & Communications (1:17-cv-03235), and Staples (1:17-cv-03285) in the Northern District of Georgia (where IPinvestments Group is based) and Dexxxon Digital Storage (1:17-cv-01238), Ingram Micro (1:17-cv-01237), Mitsubishi Chemical Holdings (Verbatim Americas) (1:17-cv-01240), and Monster Digital (1:17-cv-01239), and) in the District of Delaware.

The Federal Circuit has reversed a Delaware judge’s invalidation of a memory patent asserted by IP Valuation Partners LLC affiliate Visual Memory LLC against NVIDIA. In May 2016, District Judge Richard G. Andrews granted the defendant’s Rule 12 motion to dismiss, accepting its argument that the patent-in-suit is invalid under Alice as directed to the abstract idea of “categorical data storage” without the addition of an inventive concept (1:15-cv-00789). However, in an opinion issued on August 15, the Federal Circuit overturned that decision, holding that the patent is directed to “an improvement to computer memory systems” and not to an abstract idea (2016-2254).

Of note among the assignment records published by the USPTO during the second half of July were multiple NPE-to-NPE transactions involving patents that have been previously asserted in litigation. Also in late July, a confirmatory assignment involving patents currently being litigated by Intellectual Ventures LLC was recorded, and CG Technology, LLC completed an uncharacteristic patent acquisition.

RPX took notice, among the assignment records published by the USPTO during the latter half of June, of the transfer of patents to several repeat players in patent litigation, including IP Edge LLC and Cerinet USA Inc. Also of note were two NPE-to-NPE transactions, from Intellectual Ventures LLC to IQ Holdings, LLC, and between M2M Solutions LLC and Blackbird Tech LLC.

RPX took notice, among the USPTO assignment records made available during the first part of April, of the transfer of patents from operating companies including GlobalFoundries, NXP Semiconductors, Panasonic, and Toshiba. Also noted was an assignment of nearly 950 patents from Intellectual Ventures LLC to Monument Patent Holdings, LLC (one of the Top Ten NPEs in 2016, by defendants added and new campaigns filed). While some of April’s transactions involved patents that have already been litigated, most involve assets not yet seen in litigation, suggesting that the launch of several new campaigns is imminent.

RPX took notice, among the USPTO assignment records made available during the latter part of February, of the transfer of patents from operating companies Dongbu, Eastman Kodak, Honeywell, IBM, and Koninklijke Philips to various NPEs. One of those NPEs (Uniloc Corporation Pty. Limited) has already launched a campaign asserting the patents that it received (from IBM). RPX also saw during this time the recordation of the assignment of one two-way radio patent from one litigating NPE to another (the second, an affiliate of IP Edge LLC) and the assignment of two database management patents from a Daniel F. Perez entity that asserted them in litigation back to the Georgia patent monetization firm from which that NPE acquired them.

Numic Technology, LLC, one of the many NPEs controlled by Daniel F. Perez, has added four new defendants to its wireless camera campaign. The Texas-based NPE has filed suit against BLU Products (2:16-cv-00079), Sonim Technologies (2:16-cv-00080), TCL (TCT Mobile, dba Alcatel OneTouch) (2:16-cv-00081), and ZTE (2:16-cv-00078) for the infringement of eight patents in the Eastern District of Texas. Numic began this litigation campaign, its first and only one to date, with a lawsuit against Nikon (2:15-cv-01046) in June 2015, asserting a single patent (5,969,698) also included in its newest filings. The NPE dismissed its case against Nikon with prejudice in late October 2015, while the other cases remain active and in the early stages. The accused products have included smartphones and tablets.