$1,000 awarded for S3G Technologies software modifying patent prior art

Unified is pleased to announce PATROLL crowdsourcing contest winner, Dinesh Swami, who was awarded $1,000 for his prior art submission on U.S. Patent 8,572,571, owned by S3G Technology LLC, an NPE. The ‘571 patent relates to a computerized system for efficiently modifying remote software, focusing on adapting and customizing a computer transaction dialogue module. It had been asserted in over 55 cases against many including Party City, Hibbett Retail, Five Below, The Gap, Foot Locker, Advance Auto Parts, Vitamin Shoppe, Cinemark, AutoZone, Boot Barn, Designer Brands, and others.

We would also like to thank the dozens of other high-quality submissions that were made on this patent. The ongoing contests are open to anyone, and include tens of thousands of dollars in rewards available for helping the industry to challenge NPE patents of questionable validity by finding and submitting prior art in the contests. Visit PATROLL today to learn more about how to participate.

WINNING SUBMISSION

Velos/Avanci video codec patent found invalid

On January 4, 2024, the Central Reexamination Unit (CRU) entered a final rejection of the challenged claims of U.S. Patent 10,390,013, owned by Velos Media, an NPE. The '013 patent generally relates to encoding syntax elements that indicate tile information into a slice header. Velos Media patents have been identified as part of the Avanci Video patent pool, and Avanci asserts its pool covers AV1, H.265 (HEVC), H.266 (VVC), MPEG-DASH, and VP9 technologies.

Unified was represented by in-house counsel Jessica L.A. Marks and Michelle Aspen.

To view the reexamination request, visit Unified’s Portal: https://portal.unifiedpatents.com/exparte/90015239.

$2,000 for Digimedia Tech TV programming patent prior art

Unified Patents added a new PATROLL contest, with a $2,000 cash prize, seeking prior art on at least claim 1 of U.S. Patent 7,065,778, owned and asserted by Digimedia Tech LLC, an NPE. The ‘778 patent relates to utilizing personalized video recorders and other similar types of devices to distribute television programming. It has been asserted against WideOpenWest Finance and Midcontinent Communications.

The contest will expire on July 6, 2024. Please visit PATROLL for more information and to submit an entry for this contest.

$2,000 for Disintermediation Services web communications patent prior art

Unified Patents added a new PATROLL contest, with a $2,000 cash prize, seeking prior art on at least claim 1 of U.S. Patent 11,240,183, owned and asserted by Disintermediation Services, Inc. The present disclosure outlines a system for web-based communication. The system involves an electronic processor that manages conversations between users and responders. It has been asserted against several companies since 2022 such as LiveAdmins, Batia Infotech, LiveChat, MobileMonkey, and others.

The contest will expire on July 3, 2024. Please visit PATROLL for more information and to submit an entry for this contest.

$10,000 for AutoConnect vehicle patents prior art

Unified Patents added five new PATROLL contests, each with a $2,000 cash prize, seeking prior art on the list below. The patents are owned by AutoConnect Holdings LLC, an NPE. The patents generally relate to vehicle ecosystems.

The contests will expire on July 1, 2024. Please visit PATROLL for more information or click on each link below.

US 9020491 - Vehicle Ecosystem

US 9082239 - Intelligent Vehicle Assistance

US 9116786 - Vehicle Middleware Systems

US 9147298 - Improved Navigation Environment

US 10862764 - Universal Vehicle Console Chassis