Patent Filings Roundup: A Suit Wrapped in Swaddling Clothes, a Fishy Competitor Fight, and Sisvel’s Continued Monetization Efforts of 3G Blackberry Patents

It was another relatively normal week at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) with 30 patent filings—two post grant reviews (PGRs), 28 inter partes reviews (IPRs)—and another big one in district court with 98 new petitions—but yet again, that spike is largely driven by WSOU’s unusual filing pattern. WSOU has now sued Google on 15 separate patents, all covering different software aspects of various products, and single patent suits—the former Uniloc contingent continues to drive the numbers up, and continues to favor the Western District of Texas to do so. Some of the petitions challenging the Magnetar Capital-backed Neodron were instituted this week, the same week a tranche of Magnetar’s Data Scape patents were affirmed unpatentable on Section 101 before the Federal Circuit; further Bausch & Lomb abbreviated new drug application (ANDA)-related suits were filed as discussed last week; and new and old-hand IP Edge subs continue to file at a brisk clip.

Back is Best: As most of us with kids are now abundantly aware, there are endless products marketed (successfully) to new parents, one of which is the sleep sack or other special swaddling blankets meant to ensure infant safety and prevent SIDS—Sudden Infant Death Syndrome—or at least give nervous fathers and mothers some assurance. Personally, my son tries to flip himself every time you leave the room, leading to no small amount of paternal anxiety. Not surprisingly, there is plenty of profit—and thus litigation—to be had in the competitive space, even among smaller players, as evidenced by the suits by Big Beings USA Ltd. (Australia) against companies like Nested Bean, Inc. (US) for their swaddling blankets, here the “Zen One Convertible Swaddle.”  This week Nested Bean fought back, challenging the patent as obvious in light of the well-known risks, concerns, and methods of swaddling. It’s the so-easy-a-baby-could-remember-it IPR2020-01234, for those interested in following it.

National Products goes fishing: National Products Inc. (NPI), one of the more litigious U.S.-based small manufacturers, has since 1990 fabricated, casted, marketed, and produced various plastic and metal products like fishing reels, phone holders, cases, and the like. Through various subsidiaries like RAM Mounts®, the Seattle-based company (which boasts some 400 employees) has maintained a healthy docket of patent assertion through the years as well, notching 41 complaints, mostly against smaller competitors in the fabrication space. This time, they have sued RailBlaza, Inc. in the Eastern District of Texas on fishing rod mounts, though most of their actions have been filed locally in the District of Washington throughout the years. While this particular patent is freshly asserted, it’s a good bet that NPI plans to go the distance, as they’ve effectively used patents for years to compete in the tight computer products space. If I learned anything in private practice, it’s to not sleep on baby products, as it were—i.e., that sippy cups and diapers lead to some of the most doggedly fought patent litigation battles around.

Long live 3G: European patent aggregator Sisvel’s related entity 3G Licensing S.A. has continued to seek to monetize old 3G patents acquired from Blackberry, now against transnational manufacturers Dell, ZTE, AnyData, Verifone, Honeywell, Cradlepoint, Xirgo, Tesla, u-blox, and BLU Products, filing suits against them starting in June of last year; as of now, all 12 of the patents have been challenged before the PTAB. One can assume that other entities are likely licensed to the portfolio already, as Sisvel generally isn’t shy about filing suit.