Assignment history

Inventors

• Paul Howard. At the time of the earliest priority filing (2006-12-27 for US11/646,692), Paul Howard was likely an employee of IPWIRELESS, INC., the original assignee of that parent application.

Original assignee

The entity named as the "Original Assignee" on the Google Patents record for US11664889B2 is Intellectual Ventures II LLC. This entity filed the application US17/870,425 which led to this patent on 2022-07-21 [cite: Google Patents Legal Events].

Intellectual Ventures II LLC is part of the Intellectual Ventures family, an American private equity company focused on the development and licensing of intellectual property. Their business model primarily involves acquiring and aggregating patents and then licensing them or pursuing litigation against alleged infringers. Intellectual Ventures entities generally do not ship products embodying the claims; their revenue is derived from patent monetization strategies. Intellectual Ventures II LLC is currently operating and actively engaged in patent assertion and licensing activities.

Assignment timeline

• 2012-04-27 (executed) / recorded 2024-03-28 — Reel 066946/0181

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: IPWIRELESS, INC.
  • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES HOLDING 81 LLC
  • Correspondent: Not available from provided patent text.
  • Context: Transfer of patent rights from an operating company (IPWireless, Inc.) to a patent holding entity (Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC) following IPWireless, Inc.'s acquisition by General Dynamics.

• 2017-05-19 (executed) / recorded 2024-03-28 — Reel 066940/0126

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES HOLDING 81 LLC
  • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES II LLC
  • Correspondent: Not available from provided patent text.
  • Context: Internal transfer of patent rights between entities within the Intellectual Ventures family.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 11664889
    2006 : Priority to IPWireless application
    2012 : IPWireless assigns to IV Holding 81
    2017 : IV Holding 81 assigns to IV II
    2022 : IV II files this application
    2023 : Patent issued to IV II
    2024 : Assignments recorded 066946/0181
         : Assignments recorded 066940/0126
         : Infringement suits filed
    2025 : IPR filed against patent

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The patent was transferred from IPWIRELESS, INC., an operating company that developed and sold wireless network equipment, to INTELLECTUAL VENTURES HOLDING 81 LLC, which is a known patent holding and licensing entity associated with Intellectual Ventures, an entity widely recognized as a patent assertion entity that does not produce products. The name "Holding 81 LLC" is indicative of a shell entity.

   • Reel 066946/0181, executed 2012-04-27, recorded 2024-03-28.

2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. Intellectual Ventures II LLC and Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC are widely recognized as patent assertion entities (NPEs). The current assignee, Intellectual Ventures II LLC, is an active plaintiff in patent infringement litigation.

   • Reel 066946/0181 (assignee Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC, recorded 2024-03-28).
   • Reel 066940/0126 (assignee Intellectual Ventures II LLC, recorded 2024-03-28).

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Unclear. Correspondent information for the recorded assignments is not available from the provided patent text.

4. Cascading transfers — Present. While the execution dates are years apart (2012 and 2017), two assignments were recorded on the same date (2024-03-28) [cite: Google Patents Legal Events]. This simultaneous recording of multiple transfers within the Intellectual Ventures family, just before litigation filings, indicates a structured, coordinated movement of the asset.

   • Reel 066946/0181 (executed 2012-04-27, recorded 2024-03-28).
   • Reel 066940/0126 (executed 2017-05-19, recorded 2024-03-28).

5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present. Both assignments were recorded on 2024-03-28, which precisely coincides with the filing date of at least two US district court cases (6:24-cv-00188 and 1:24-cv-00390 in Texas Western District Court) citing this patent [cite: Google Patents Legal Events]. This timing strongly suggests the assignment recordings were strategically executed in preparation for or immediately prior to patent assertion.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. IPWireless, Inc. was acquired by NextWave Wireless Inc. in 2007, which was subsequently acquired by General Dynamics in 2012. There is no indication of bankruptcy proceedings.

7. Privateering — Unclear. While IPWireless, Inc. was an operating company, the assignment to Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC (effective 2012-04-27) occurred around the same time General Dynamics announced its intent to acquire IPWireless (May 2012). This suggests a divestiture of patent assets as part of an acquisition rather than an active partnership where IPWireless directed IV to sue its competitors.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The current assignee, Intellectual Ventures II LLC, is a known patent assertion entity, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The strong signals for NPE activity are abundant: the chain includes known patent assertion entities (Intellectual Ventures II LLC and Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC), the initial transfer was from an operating company to a shell entity (IPWireless, Inc. to Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC, Reel 066946/0181), and the recording of assignments (Reel 066946/0181 and 066940/0126, recorded 2024-03-28) coincides exactly with the filing of infringement lawsuits related to this patent [cite: Google Patents Legal Events].

For verification, see USPTO Assignment Center: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/patent/11664889