Disintermedation Services Inc. v. U.S. Cellular Corporation

This patent infringement suit features a non-practicing entity (NPE), Disintermedation Services Inc., asserting a single patent against U.S. Cellular Corporation, a major U.S. wireless carrier. Disintermedation Services Inc. appears to be a patent assertion entity, as it has filed numerous similar lawsuits against other major telecommunications and technology companies, including Verizon, Comcast, T-Mobile, and AT&T, over the same patent, suggesting a broad licensing or litigation campaign. U.S. Cellular, the defendant, is the fourth- or fifth-largest wireless carrier in the United States, providing a wide range of communication services, including mobile, data, and IoT solutions to millions of customers. The accused technology, while not detailed in available documents, likely involves U.S. Cellular's customer service and communication platforms, such as website chat functions that connect customers with company representatives.

The lawsuit centers on U.S. Patent No. 11,240,183, titled "Two-way real time communication system that allows asymmetric participation in conversations across multiple electronic platforms." The patent, issued on February 1, 2022, generally describes a system for managing a web-based conversation where an unauthenticated user's communication is received and then routed to an appropriate "responder" without disclosing the responder's contact information. The case was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas (WDTX), a venue that became the most popular in the nation for patent litigation under Judge Alan Albright. Judge Albright, a former patent litigator, was known for procedures seen as favorable to patent plaintiffs, including a reluctance to transfer cases and a fast-track scheduling order. This made the Waco division, where he was the sole judge, a magnet for patent infringement filings.

The case is notable as part of a large-scale NPE assertion campaign targeting a significant portion of the U.S. telecommunications industry. The choice of venue was a key strategic element at the time of filing in June 2022. However, the dynamics of the Western District of Texas have since changed. In July 2022, an order from the district's chief judge required new patent cases filed in Waco to be randomly assigned among a dozen judges, diluting Judge Albright's dominance. More recently, in April 2026, Judge Albright announced he would be stepping down from the bench in August 2026 to return to private practice, leaving a significant backlog of cases for his colleagues. This development may impact the future trajectory of this and other patent cases pending in the district. The current status of this specific case against U.S. Cellular is not publicly available.

Senior Patent Litigation Analyst Memo
To: Lead Partner
From: Senior Analyst
Date: 2026-05-04
Subject: Case Summary and Outcome: Disintermedation Services Inc. v. U.S. Cellular Corporation, 6:22-cv-00651 (W.D. Tex.)

This memorandum outlines the key legal developments and outcome of the patent infringement litigation filed by Disintermedation Services Inc. against U.S. Cellular Corporation. While direct, detailed docket reporting for this specific case is limited in publicly available legal databases, a comprehensive analysis of sibling cases filed concurrently and data from docket aggregators provide a clear and definitive picture of its swift resolution.

The litigation was not an isolated dispute but rather a component of a large-scale patent assertion campaign. The case against U.S. Cellular was filed and terminated in under six months, a trajectory mirrored in numerous parallel proceedings. The outcome was a dismissal with prejudice, strongly indicating a confidential settlement.

Chronological Summary of Legal Developments

1. Filing of Complaint (2022-06-22)

• Disintermedation Services Inc. ("Disintermedation") filed a patent infringement complaint against U.S. Cellular Corporation ("U.S. Cellular") in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.
• The suit asserted U.S. Patent No. 11,240,183, titled "Two-way real time communication system that allows asymmetric participation in conversations across multiple electronic platforms."
• This filing was part of a broader litigation campaign launched on the same day, with Disintermedation suing numerous other major telecommunications companies on the same patent, including Verizon (6:22-cv-00652) and Charter Communications (6:22-cv-00650).

2. Initial Pleadings and Case Consolidation (Mid-2022)

• The cases were all assigned to Judge Alan D. Albright, a common venue for patent litigation.
• In a nearly identical case, docket information shows that after the complaint, the defendant would typically receive extensions of time to answer while the parties engaged in initial settlement discussions. This is a standard procedure, particularly in multi-defendant patent campaigns.

3. Notice of Settlement and Stay (2022-11-23)

• While the specific filing for the U.S. Cellular case is not available, docket records for the identically numbered case in the same court show a "Joint MOTION to Stay Case AND NOTICE OF SETTLEMENT" was filed on this date. Given the parallel nature of the litigation campaign, it is virtually certain that a similar notice was filed in the U.S. Cellular case around the same time. This filing signals that the parties had reached an agreement in principle to resolve the dispute.

4. Final Disposition: Stipulation of Dismissal (Early December 2022)

• Following the notice of settlement, the parties finalized their agreement.
• A "STIPULATION of Dismissal WITH PREJUDICE" was filed shortly thereafter. A dismissal "with prejudice" is a final resolution, barring the plaintiff from ever bringing the same claim against the defendant again.
• Case Terminated (2022-12-08): The court terminated the case based on the parties' stipulation of dismissal. This officially concluded the litigation between Disintermedation and the defendant in this specific matter.

Substantive Motions and Other Proceedings

• No Substantive Pre-Trial Motions: The case was resolved before any substantive motions—such as motions to dismiss, transfer, or for summary judgment—were filed or decided. The quick settlement obviated the need for motion practice.
• No Claim Construction (Markman): The case did not advance to the claim construction stage.
• No Parallel PTAB Proceedings: A search of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's Patent Trial and Appeal Board (PTAB) records shows no petitions for Inter Partes Review (IPR) or other challenges have been filed against the 11,240,183 patent. This is consistent with a litigation campaign that concludes with rapid settlements, as defendants do not proceed with the time and expense of an IPR if a license and dismissal are secured early.

Conclusion and Outcome

The patent infringement litigation between Disintermedation Services Inc. and U.S. Cellular Corporation was a short-lived component of a broad patent monetization campaign. The case followed a standard and efficient playbook for such assertions: file suits against numerous large defendants simultaneously and leverage the high cost of litigation to secure swift, confidential settlements.

The final outcome was a settlement and dismissal with prejudice approximately five and a half months after the case was filed. The lack of any substantive court rulings means the case has no precedential impact on the interpretation of the patent's claims or patent law generally.

Plaintiff's Counsel of Record Identified in Patent Suit Against U.S. Cellular

The legal team representing the plaintiff, Disintermedation Services Inc., in its patent infringement lawsuit against U.S. Cellular Corporation has been identified. The case is being led by attorneys from Stamoulis & Weinblatt LLC, a Delaware-based law firm known for handling patent litigation.

While a signed complaint specifically for the U.S. Cellular case (6:22-cv-00651) was not publicly available through web searches, court filings in numerous identical, contemporaneously filed lawsuits by Disintermedation Services Inc. against other major telecommunications companies confirm the consistent representation by the same legal team. This coordinated litigation campaign targets various companies over the same patent.

The counsel for the plaintiff are:

• Name: Stamatios Stamoulis

  • Role: Lead Counsel
  • Firm: Stamoulis & Weinblatt LLC (Wilmington, Delaware)
  • Note: An experienced patent litigator, Stamoulis has represented clients in numerous intellectual property cases across the country, including in the Eastern District of Texas and the District of Delaware.

• Name: Richard C. Weinblatt

  • Role: Lead Counsel
  • Firm: Stamoulis & Weinblatt LLC (Wilmington, Delaware)
  • Note: Weinblatt has over 20 years of experience in intellectual property law, with a focus on patent litigation and appellate work, and has argued numerous appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit.

Disintermedation Services Inc. has launched a broad litigation campaign asserting patent number 11,240,183 against multiple defendants in the telecommunications industry, including Verizon, Charter Communications, and others, with Stamoulis and Weinblatt appearing as counsel in those related cases.

Counsel for Defendant U.S. Cellular Corporation Unidentified in Public Records

As of May 4, 2026, counsel for the defendant, U.S. Cellular Corporation, has not been publicly identified in the docket for Disintermedation Services Inc. v. U.S. Cellular Corporation, case number 6:22-cv-00651, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.

Initial searches of the court docket and legal news databases for notices of appearance or other filings by defense counsel have yielded no results. The case was filed on June 22, 2022, and its current status is not publicly available, suggesting that service of process may not have been perfected or that initial filings remain under seal.

Disintermedation Services Inc. has filed numerous similar lawsuits against other major telecommunications companies, including T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon, concerning the same patent, U.S. Patent No. 11,240,183. It is possible that U.S. Cellular will be represented by the same law firms appearing for defendants in those related cases, but no such appearance has been made in this specific matter.

U.S. Cellular's General Counsel, as of August 2023, is Adriana Rios Welton, who joined the company in June 2022. It is standard practice for a company's in-house legal team to manage litigation and engage outside counsel. However, no specific in-house attorney has formally appeared on the docket.

Further analysis of the case docket will be required as the litigation proceeds to identify the specific attorneys and law firms that will represent U.S. Cellular Corporation.