Assignment history

Inventors

• Theodore B. Achacoso: Based on contemporaneous web records from the late 1990s, Achacoso was the CEO and co-founder of the original assignee, GroupServe, Inc.
• D. Wayne Silby: Silby was the Chairman and co-founder of GroupServe, Inc. He is also known for co-founding the Calvert Group of socially responsible investment funds.

There are no unusual patterns, as both inventors were principals of the original assignee at the time of filing.

Original assignee

The original assignee was GroupServe Inc., based in Washington, D.C. The company developed and sold a web-based group collaboration platform that appears to have embodied the claims of the patent. The product facilitated online discussions, scheduling, and document sharing for professional groups. The company was operational at the time of filing but appears to have ceased direct operations in the early 2000s, with its primary asset becoming its patent portfolio.

Assignment timeline

• 2002-05-01 / recorded 2002-05-10 — Reel 012678/0001

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: GROUPSERVE, INC.
  • Assignee: MVP AMERICA, L.P.
  • Correspondent: Robert O. Guyol, Weingarten, Schurgin, Gagnebin & Lebovici, LLP, Boston, MA
  • Context: Initial transfer of the patent from the original operating company to a venture partnership. The subsequent assignment record suggests this transfer may have been superseded or reverted.

• 2005-06-16 / recorded 2005-06-20 — Reel 016551/0867

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: GROUPSERVE, INC.
  • Assignee: GROUPSERVE IP TRUST LLC
  • Correspondent: Anthony P. Knerr, GroupServe, Inc., Washington, DC
  • Context: Internal transfer from the original operating company to a holding trust, a common first step in preparing a patent for licensing or assertion.

• 2013-02-21 / recorded 2013-02-22 — Reel 029705/0114

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: GROUPSERVE IP TRUST, LLC
  • Assignee: LVL PATENT GROUP, LLC
  • Correspondent: Jonathan T. Suder, Friedman, Suder & Cooke, P.C., Houston, TX
  • Context: Transfer to a patent assertion entity as part of a rapid, two-step transfer chain.

• 2013-02-22 / recorded 2013-03-01 — Reel 029800/0854

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: LVL PATENT GROUP, LLC
  • Assignee: SAMPO IP LLC
  • Correspondent: Jonathan T. Suder, Friedman, Suder & Cooke, Houston, TX. This is the same correspondent as the immediately preceding assignment.
  • Context: The second step in a cascading transfer, moving the patent to the final assertion entity just days after the prior transfer and weeks before the first infringement lawsuit.

• 2015-04-24 / recorded 2015-04-27 — Reel 035252/0974

  • Conveyance: Security Interest
  • Assignor: MARATHON PATENT GROUP, INC., SAMPO IP, LLC
  • Assignee: DBD CREDIT FUNDING, LLC
  • Correspondent: William J. Mason, Mason & Associates, PA, Clearwater, FL
  • Context: Securitization of the patent as collateral for financing, a common practice for publicly-traded patent assertion entities like Marathon.

• 2016-12-31 / recorded 2017-01-11 — Reel 041131/0001

  • Conveyance: Security Interest
  • Assignor: MARATHON PATENT GROUP, INC., SAMPO IP, LLC, et al.
  • Assignee: DBD CREDIT FUNDING LLC, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
  • Correspondent: Ernest J. Park, Alston & Bird LLP, New York, NY
  • Context: An updated security agreement covering a larger portfolio of patents, including US6161149.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 6161149
    1998 : Filed by GroupServe Inc
    2000 : Issued to GroupServe Inc
    2005 : Assigned to GroupServe IP Trust
    2013 : Assigned to LVL Patent Group LLC
         : Assigned to Sampo IP LLC (Marathon)
         : First infringement suits filed
    2015 : Used as collateral in Security Agmt

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The patent was moved from the operating company GroupServe, Inc. to a series of non-practicing LLCs whose names are typical of assertion vehicles: "GroupServe IP Trust, LLC", "LVL Patent Group, LLC", and "Sampo IP LLC" (Reels 016551/0867, 029705/0114, 029800/0854).

2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. The assignee Sampo IP LLC is a known patent asserter and a subsidiary of Marathon Patent Group (now operating as Fortress Investment Group's IP business), a publicly identified high-frequency plaintiff according to both Unified Patents and RPX. This is confirmed by the security agreement at Reel 035252/0974, which lists both Sampo IP and Marathon Patent Group as assignors.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present. Jonathan T. Suder of Friedman, Suder & Cooke acted as the correspondent for both the transfer into LVL Patent Group and the immediate subsequent transfer into Sampo IP LLC (Reels 029705/0114 and 029800/0854). This indicates the two transfers were part of a single coordinated transaction.

4. Cascading transfers — Present. The patent was transferred from GroupServe IP Trust to LVL Patent Group on 2013-02-21 and then immediately from LVL to Sampo IP on 2013-02-22. These back-to-back assignments occurring within a 24-hour period are a classic indicator of setting up an assertion campaign.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present. The final assignment to asserter Sampo IP LLC was executed on February 22, 2013 (Reel 029800/0854). The first infringement lawsuits asserting this patent were filed starting in April 2013 (e.g., Sampo IP, LLC v. Huawei Device USA Inc. et al, 2:13-cv-00225, E.D. Tex.), less than two months after the transfer.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. There is no evidence that GroupServe, Inc. underwent bankruptcy proceedings.

7. Privateering — Unclear. While the patent moved from its original creators to an NPE, there is no public evidence to suggest that the original company, GroupServe, directed the subsequent litigation campaign against its competitors.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The chain does not terminate at a known defensive aggregator.

Verdict

• NPE — high confidence

This patent exhibits at least four strong, classic signals of NPE activity. It was transferred from its original operating company assignee into a series of shell-like LLCs (Reel 029705/0114). The chain of title includes known, high-volume patent asserters Sampo IP LLC and Marathon Patent Group (Reel 029800/0854). The final transfers were part of a rapid cascade (executed one day apart) and occurred less than two months before the first infringement lawsuits were filed, indicating the transfers were made to prepare for litigation.

Verification link: USPTO Patent Assignment Search for Pat. No. 6161149