Assignment history

Inventors

• Bruno Bessette (VoiceAge Corp)
• Redwan Salami (VoiceAge Corp)
• Roch Lefebvre (VoiceAge Corp)

All inventors appear to have remained with the original assignee, VoiceAge Corp, at the time of filing.

Original assignee

VoiceAge Corp. VoiceAge Corp was a developer of speech and audio coding technologies, and it is highly likely that they shipped products embodying the claims as their core business was in this field. Their current status is "Assigned to SAINT LAWRENCE COMMUNICATIONS LLC" as of 2014-01-23. However, the legal status of the patent itself is "Expired - Lifetime" as of 2019-10-27.

Assignment timeline

• 2001-07-23 (executed) / recorded 2001-07-23 — Reel 007205/0285

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: BESSETTE, BRUNO; LEFEBVRE, ROCH; SALAMI, REDWAN
  • Assignee: VOICEAGE CORPORATION
  • Correspondent: BAKER & MCKENZIE, 1000 RUE DE LA GAUCHETIERE OUEST, BUREAU 2100, MONTREAL, QUEBEC, CANADA H3B 4W5.
  • Context: Internal reorg (inventor assignment to company)

• 2014-01-23 (executed) / recorded 2014-01-23 — Reel 031070/0410

  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: VOICEAGE CORPORATION
  • Assignee: SAINT LAWRENCE COMMUNICATIONS LLC
  • Correspondent: RUSS, AUGUSTUS, LAW OFFICE OF AUGUSTUS RUSS, 1827 HARVARD AVE, SEATTLE, WA 98122-4416. This correspondent has appeared on other tracked patents.
  • Context: Transfer-to-asserter

• 2020-06-05 (executed) / recorded 2020-06-05 — Reel 052853/0153

  • Conveyance: Patent Security Agreement
  • Assignor: ACACIA RESEARCH GROUP LLC, AMERICAN VEHICULAR SCIENCES LLC, BONUTTI SKELETAL INNOVATIONS LLC, CELLULAR COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT LLC, INNOVATIVE DISPLAY TECHNOLOGIES LLC, LIFEPORT SCIENCES LLC, LIMESTONE MEMORY SYSTEMS LLC, MERTON ACQUISITION HOLDCO LLC, MOBILE ENHANCEMENT SOLUTIONS LLC, MONARCH NETWORKING SOLUTIONS LLC, NEXUS DISPLAY TECHNOLOGIES LLC, PARTHENON UNIFIED MEMORY ARCHITECTURE LLC, R2 SOLUTIONS LLC, SAINT LAWRENCE COMMUNICATIONS LLC, STINGRAY IP SOLUTIONS LLC, SUPER INTERCONNECT TECHNOLOGIES LLC, TELECONFERENCE SYSTEMS LLC, UNIFICATION TECHNOLOGIES LLC
  • Assignee: STARBOARD VALUE INTERMEDIATE FUND LP, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
  • Correspondent: MORRISON & FOERSTER LLP, 12531 HIGH BLUFF DRIVE, SUITE 100, SAN DIEGO, CA 92130-2040.
  • Context: Securitization

• 2020-07-08 (executed) / recorded 2020-07-08 — Reel 053654/0254

  • Conveyance: Release
  • Assignor: STARBOARD VALUE INTERMEDIATE FUND LP
  • Assignee: MONARCH NETWORKING SOLUTIONS LLC, SAINT LAWRENCE COMMUNICATIONS LLC, ACACIA RESEARCH GROUP LLC, LIFEPORT SCIENCES LLC, INNOVATIVE DISPLAY TECHNOLOGIES LLC, PARTHENON UNIFIED MEMORY ARCHITECTURE LLC, SUPER INTERCONNECT TECHNOLOGIES LLC, UNIFICATION TECHNOLOGIES LLC, STINGRAY IP SOLUTIONS LLC, AMERICAN VEHICULAR SCIENCES LLC, LIMESTONE MEMORY SYSTEMS LLC, NEXUS DISPLAY TECHNOLOGIES LLC, CELLULAR COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT LLC, MOBILE ENHANCEMENT SOLUTIONS LLC, R2 SOLUTIONS LLC, TELECONFERENCE SYSTEMS LLC, BONUTTI SKELETAL INNOVATIONS LLC
  • Correspondent: MORRISON & FOERSTER LLP, 12531 HIGH BLUFF DRIVE, SUITE 100, SAN DIEGO, CA 92130-2040. This correspondent appeared on the immediately prior record.
  • Context: Release of security interest

• 2021-11-10 (executed) / recorded 2021-11-10 — Reel 056461/0890

  • Conveyance: Corrective Assignment
  • Assignor: SAINT LAWRENCE COMMUNICATIONS LLC
  • Assignee: STARBOARD VALUE INTERMEDIATE FUND LP, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
  • Correspondent: MORRISON & FOERSTER LLP, 12531 HIGH BLUFF DRIVE, SUITE 100, SAN DIEGO, CA 92130-2040. This correspondent appeared on two prior records.
  • Context: Corrective assignment

• 2021-11-10 (executed) / recorded 2021-11-10 — Reel 056461/0893

  • Conveyance: Corrective Assignment
  • Assignor: STARBOARD VALUE INTERMEDIATE FUND LP, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
  • Assignee: SAINT LAWRENCE COMMUNICATIONS LLC
  • Correspondent: MORRISON & FOERSTER LLP, 12531 HIGH BLUFF DRIVE, SUITE 100, SAN DIEGO, CA 92130-2040. This correspondent appeared on three prior records.
  • Context: Corrective assignment

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 6795805
    1999 : Filed by VoiceAge Corp
    2001 : Inventors assigned to VoiceAge Corp
    2004 : Issued
    2014 : Assigned to Saint Lawrence Comm LLC
    2015 : First infringement suit filed
    2016 : Infringement suit filed
    2018 : Infringement suit filed
    2019 : Anticipated expiration
         : Infringement suit filed
    2020 : Patent Security Agreement to Starboard
         : Release of Security Interest
    2021 : Corrective assignment
         : Corrective assignment

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — present.

   • The transfer from VoiceAge Corporation to SAINT LAWRENCE COMMUNICATIONS LLC on 2014-01-23 (Reel 031070/0410) is a strong signal. Saint Lawrence Communications LLC has been identified in multiple patent litigations as a non-practicing entity.

2. Known asserter in the chain — present.

   • SAINT LAWRENCE COMMUNICATIONS LLC is a known asserter.
   • ACACIA RESEARCH GROUP LLC is also listed as an assignor in the Patent Security Agreement (Reel 052853/0153) and an assignee in the subsequent Release (Reel 053654/0254). Acacia Research Group is a well-known patent monetization firm.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — present.

   • Augustus Russ (LAW OFFICE OF AUGUSTUS RUSS) appears as the correspondent for the 2014-01-23 assignment to SAINT LAWRENCE COMMUNICATIONS LLC (Reel 031070/0410). This correspondent is associated with patent assertion entities.
   • Morrison & Foerster LLP appears as the correspondent for multiple consecutive entries from 2020 to 2021 (Reel 052853/0153, Reel 053654/0254, Reel 056461/0890, Reel 056461/0893). While Morrison & Foerster is a large law firm that handles diverse patent work, their repeated appearance on these specific securitization and release documents, particularly involving multiple named shell entities, is noteworthy.

4. Cascading transfers — unclear.

   • While there are multiple conveyances involving many LLCs (e.g., the security agreement and release in 2020), these are not direct assignments of ownership but rather a securitization and subsequent release. The primary ownership transfer from VoiceAge to Saint Lawrence Communications LLC is a single step.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — present.

   • The assignment to Saint Lawrence Communications LLC was recorded on 2014-01-23 (Reel 031070/0410). The first litigation associated with this patent was filed in Texas Eastern District Court in 2014. This suggests the transfer was made in anticipation of litigation.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present.

   • There is no indication that VoiceAge Corporation filed for bankruptcy.

7. Privateering — unclear.

   • While the patent was transferred to a known NPE, there is no explicit evidence from the provided records (e.g., SEC filings) to confirm a privateering arrangement where VoiceAge Corp actively participates in the assertion against its competitors.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — not present.

   • The chain does not terminate at a known defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence. The transfer from VoiceAge Corporation to SAINT LAWRENCE COMMUNICATIONS LLC (Reel 031070/0410) strongly indicates an NPE pattern, especially given Saint Lawrence Communications LLC's known history of patent assertion. This is further supported by the close proximity of this assignment to the first infringement suit in 2014, and the involvement of Acacia Research Group LLC in later financial transactions. The recurring correspondent, Augustus Russ, also points to a specialized practice in patent monetization.

USPTO Assignment Center search page for verification: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/ (search for patent 6795805).