Claims drawn to “enterprise network” monitoring and analysis are patent-eligible, according to Delaware’s Judge Sue Robinson, who denied the defendant’s motion for Summary Judgment of invalidity under 35 U.S.C. § 101 in SRI International Inc. v. Cisco Systems Inc., No. 1:2013cv01534 (D. Del. April 11, 2016). Some people – including many patent examiners – will […]
Archive | Patentable Subject Matter
How Do Biotech Patent-Eligibility Cases Speak to Computer Patent-Eligibility Cases?
The Federal Circuit recently held that a claim of U.S. Patent No. 5,612,179, reciting “methods of detecting genetic variations” was directed to unpatentable subject matter under 35 U.S.C. § 101. Genetic Technologies Ltd. V. Merial, LLC, Nos. 2015-1202, 2015-1203 (Fed. Cir. April 8, 2016). Anytime the Federal Circuit weighs in on Section 101 patent-eligibility, those […]
E.D. Texas Judge Gilstrap Holds “Computerized Discount Redemption System” Patent-Ineligible
No one will be surprised that a court has held that patent claims directed to a “discount redemption system” are not patent-eligible under 35 U.S.C. § 101. Worth noting, however, is that this determination comes from Judge Gilstrap’s court in the Eastern District of Texas, that court’s patent-friendly reputation notwithstanding. In NexusCard, Inc. v. The […]
Court Holds Patent Claims Fail Alice Test After PTAB Declined to Institute CBM on Patent-Eligibility Grounds
By Charles Bieneman on April 8, 2016 in Litigation, Patentable Subject Matter, PTAB, Software Patents
Patent claims directed to “providing money or an item of value to an account-holder” and “paying on behalf of a person for money or an item of value” fail the abstract idea test of Alice Corp. v. CLS Bank, according to a federal district court. Global Cash Access Inc. v. NRT Technology Corp., No. 2:15-cv-00822 […]
Claims to Electronic “Message Publishing” Not Patent-Eligible
Twitter has won a summary judgment of invalidity, under 35 U.S.C. § 101 and the familiar Alice/Mayo “abstract idea test, concerning claims of five patents directed to authenticating a message sender and then converting a message to a format to display on the Internet. Easyweb Innovations, LLC v. Twitter, Inc., No 11-CV-4550 (JFB)(SIL) (E.D.N.Y. March […]
Ho-Hum – Federal Circuit Affirms PTAB Decision that Claims Directed to Securities Trading System Are Not Patent-Eligible
By Charles Bieneman on April 5, 2016 in Covered Business Method Patent Review, Patentable Subject Matter, Software Patents
In a one-word per curiam order, the Federal Circuit has affirmed the Patent Trial and Appeal Board’s holding that patent claims directed to a securities trading system are invalid under 35 U.S.C. § 101. Chicago Board Options Exchange Inc. v. International Securities Exchange LLC, 2015-1728, 2015-1729, 2015-1730 (Fed. Cir. March 25, 2016). Here are links […]
One-Court Alice Backlash: Delaware’s Judge Robinson, Critical of Recent Trends, Upholds Software Patents in Three Cases
Judge Sue Robinson—the longest-serving judge in the District of Delaware, among the most popular patent venues in the nation—bucked the trend in patent-eligibility law. Recently, she issued three opinions in three cases addressing software-related patents under 35 U.S.C. § 101. Improved Search LLC v. AOL, Inc., Civ. No. 15-262-SLR (D. Del. Mar. 22, 2016); Intellectual Ventures […]
Claim Drawn to Automated Call Processing Survives Patent-Eligibility Challenge
Patent drafters are often advised, in the wake of Alice Corp. Pty. Ltd. v. CLS Bank Int’l., to use technical-sounding language in their patent claims. Here is a case that both bears out that advice - and at the same time illustrates the vagaries of our current regime of patent-eligibility law. In Ronald A. Katz […]
Digital Messaging and Data Processing Patent Claims Survive Section 101/Alice Challenge
For the second day in a row, this blog focuses on a case upholding the patent-eligibility, under 35 U.S.C. § 101, of patent claims that recite processing and transmitting data. In Signal IP, Inc. v. American Honda Motor Co., Inc., No. 2-14-cv-02454 (CD Cal., March 22, 2016), the court upheld the patent-eligibility of claims of […]
Computer Modeling Breast Prosthesis Survives 12(b)(6) § 101 Challenge
A court has declined, at least for the moment, to hold patent-ineligible claims directed to making a computer model of a part, in this case, a breast prosthesis. ContourMed Inc. v. American Breast Care LP, No. 4-15-cv-02769 (TXSD March 17, 2016, Order) (Miller, J.). Although the claims do recite use of hardware (e.g., a “scanning […]
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