Assignment history

Inventors

The inventors listed on U.S. Patent 11,470,138 are:

• David F. Brueck
• Mark B. Hurst
• R. Drew Major

At the time of the original invention (priority date April 30, 2004), the inventors were associated with Move Networks, Inc., a pioneer in adaptive bitrate streaming technology. R. Drew Major was a co-founder of Novell, and later founded Move Networks. The technology and associated patent portfolio were later acquired by DISH Network. There are no unusual patterns, such as mass departures, associated with the inventors. The transfer of the intellectual property occurred as part of a corporate acquisition of the technology.

Original Assignee

The "Current Assignee" listed on the patent face is Dish Technologies LLC. This entity is the research and development subsidiary of DISH Network Corporation, a major U.S. provider of satellite television, and a direct-to-consumer streaming provider through its subsidiary, Sling TV.

DISH and its subsidiaries ship products and services that embody the claims of the patent, most notably the Sling TV service and the DISH Anywhere streaming platform, both of which rely on adaptive bitrate streaming technology. DISH Network is an active, publicly traded operating company.

Assignment Timeline

A search of the USPTO Patent Assignment Database for U.S. Patent No. 11,470,138 reveals two assignments, which formally vest the rights from the inventors to the current assignee.

• 2020-05-18 (executed) / recorded 2020-05-18 — Reel 054707/0401

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: David F. Brueck, Mark B. Hurst, R. Drew Major
  • Assignee: Dish Technologies L.L.C.
  • Correspondent: Thomas W. Cook, McAfee & Taft A Professional Corporation, 10th Floor, Two Leadership Square, 211 N. Robinson, Oklahoma City, OK 73102.
  • Context: Standard assignment from the named inventors to their employer/successor-in-interest, recorded on the same day the application for this patent was filed.

• 2021-04-05 (executed) / recorded 2021-04-05 — Reel 058316/0927

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: Mark B. Hurst, R. Drew Major
  • Assignee: Dish Technologies L.L.C.
  • Correspondent: Thomas W. Cook, McAfee & Taft A Professional Corporation, 10th Floor, Two Leadership Square, 211 N. Robinson, Oklahoma City, OK 73102. This is the same correspondent as the prior assignment.
  • Context: A confirmatory or "clean-up" assignment from two of the inventors to the same assignee, likely to ensure the chain of title is clean for all assets in the patent family.

Timeline Diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 11470138
    2004 : Priority Date (Move Networks)
    2005 : First non-provisional application filed
    2010 : DISH Network acquires Move Networks assets
    2020 : Application for '138 patent filed
         : Inventors assign rights to Dish Technologies
    2021 : Confirmatory assignment recorded
    2022 : Patent Issued to Dish Technologies
    2023 : DISH begins asserting patent in litigation

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer: Not present. The assignee, Dish Technologies LLC, is the R&D subsidiary of DISH Network, a large, well-known operating company. The patent remains with its originating corporate family.

2. Known asserter in the chain: Not present. While DISH is an active litigant, it is an operating company asserting its own patents, not a Non-Practicing Entity (NPE). It does not appear on public lists of patent trolls.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain: Present, but not indicative of NPE activity. The same correspondent, Thomas W. Cook of McAfee & Taft, appears on both assignments (Reel 054707/0401 and 058316/0927). This represents standard corporate practice where a company uses a consistent outside counsel for its patent portfolio management.

4. Cascading transfers: Not present. There are no rapid, sequential transfers through multiple LLCs. The chain of title is a simple, two-step transfer from the inventors to the operating company.

5. Pre-litigation transfer: Not present. The assignments were recorded in 2020 and 2021 to perfect title, well before the litigation campaign began in August 2023. These actions are consistent with corporate IP hygiene, not a transfer for the purpose of litigation.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale: Not present. The assignment chain does not involve a bankruptcy proceeding.

7. Privateering: Not present. DISH is asserting the patent directly (via its subsidiaries) rather than transferring it to a third-party NPE to sue on its behalf.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE): Not present. The patent is held by DISH for assertive purposes and has not been transferred to a defensive organization.

Verdict

• Operating-company assertion

The ownership history is straightforward and does not exhibit any characteristics of NPE or "patent troll" activity. The patent originated with inventors at Move Networks, whose assets were acquired by DISH Network. The assignment chain shows a clean transfer of rights from the inventors to DISH Technologies LLC, the R&D arm of DISH. The subsequent litigation campaign is being waged directly by DISH and its subsidiary (Sling TV) against competitors in the video streaming market. This is a clear case of an operating company enforcing its own intellectual property rights.

This analysis can be verified by reviewing the records at the USPTO Patent Assignment Search.