Pointwise Ventures LLC has kicked off a litigation campaign by suing Alibaba ( 2:24-cv-00182), Blippar ( 2:24-cv-00182), Farfetch UK ( 2:24-cv-00182), Glority Global (2:24-cv-00187), Roadget Business (d/b/a SHEIN) (2:24-cv-00189), Samsung (2:24-cv-00190), Stichting Ingka (IKEA North America Services) (2:24-cv-00188), and Syte (2:24-cv-00191) in the Eastern District of Texas, as well as Microsoft ( 6:24-cv-00139) in the Western District of Texas. The New Mexico plaintiff accuses the defendants of infringing a single patent generally related to a "pointing and identification" device through visual search tools within their respective platforms.
USPTO assignment records have yet to reflect an assignment of the asserted patent (8,471,812) away from Ovyrvu LLC, an entity controlled by sole inventor Jesse C. Bunch, but the plaintiff alleges that it is the "assignee of all right, title and interest" in the patent, including "all rights to enforce and prosecute actions for infringement and to collect damages for all relevant times against infringers of the Patent-in-Suit". The '812 patent issued to Bunch (identifying himself on social media as having been "Director of Research and Development" with Ovyrvu since October 2003) in June 2013 with estimated priority in September 2005.
Pointwise Ventures was formed in New Mexico on November 29, 2023, with little to no public information on its management or personnel. The plaintiff has disclosed that it does not have a parent corporation and that there is no publicly held corporation owning ten percent or more of its stock. Rabicoff Law LLC, which has lately filed multiple complaints on behalf of plaintiffs with ties to Jeffrey M. Gross, filed the complaints for Pointwise Ventures.
These new cases have yet to be assigned to presiding judges. 3/15, Alibaba, Blippar, Farfetch, 3/16, Glority Global, IKEA North America Services, Roadget Business, 3/17, Samsung, Syte, Eastern District of Texas; 3/15, Microsoft, Western District of Texas.
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