Assignment history

Inventors

The inventors named on US Patent 7260587 are Carl A. Testa, Andrew Sailus, Kenneth D. Corby, Leanne M. Capozzi, Dale F. McIntyre, and Joseph A. Manico. At the time of filing, it is highly probable that all listed inventors were employed by Eastman Kodak Co., the original assignee, given common industry practices for patent applications.

Original assignee

The original assignee of US Patent 7260587 was Eastman Kodak Co. Historically, Eastman Kodak was a prominent manufacturer of photographic film, chemicals, and cameras. They also developed and shipped products embodying claims related to digital imaging and photofinishing services. Eastman Kodak Company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January 2012 and emerged in September 2013 as a smaller company focused on commercial printing and imaging services.

Assignment timeline

The following is a chronological list of recorded assignments for US Patent 7260587. Reel/Frame and Correspondent information is not available in the provided patent text.

• 2012-02-21 (executed) / recorded 2012-02-21

  • Conveyance: Reassignment (Security Interest)
  • Assignor: EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY, PAKON, INC.
  • Assignee: CITICORP NORTH AMERICA, INC., AS AGENT
  • Correspondent: Not available in provided text.
  • Context: Securitization of intellectual property assets by Eastman Kodak.

• 2013-02-01 (executed) / recorded 2013-02-01

  • Conveyance: Reassignment (Patent Release)
  • Assignor: CITICORP NORTH AMERICA, INC., WILMINGTON TRUST, NATIONAL ASSOCIATION
  • Assignee: NPEC INC., LASER-PACIFIC MEDIA CORPORATION, QUALEX INC., KODAK REALTY, INC., KODAK IMAGING NETWORK, INC., KODAK PORTUGUESA LIMITED, FAR EAST DEVELOPMENT LTD., CREO MANUFACTURING AMERICA LLC, KODAK AMERICAS, LTD., EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY, PAKON, INC., FPC INC., KODAK (NEAR EAST), INC., EASTMAN KODAK INTERNATIONAL CAPITAL COMPANY, INC., KODAK AVIATION LEASING LLC, KODAK PHILIPPINES, LTD.
  • Correspondent: Not available in provided text.
  • Context: Release of security interest, likely returning control of the patents to various Kodak entities during bankruptcy restructuring.

• 2013-04-10 (executed) / recorded 2013-04-10

  • Conveyance: Reassignment (Assignment of Assignors Interest)
  • Assignor: EASTMAN KODAK COMPANY
  • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES FUND 83 LLC
  • Correspondent: Not available in provided text.
  • Context: Transfer of patent rights as part of Eastman Kodak's bankruptcy proceedings and sale of its digital imaging patent portfolio.

• 2013-05-28 (executed) / recorded 2013-05-28

  • Conveyance: Reassignment (Assignment of Assignors Interest)
  • Assignor: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES FUND 83 LLC
  • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES II LLC
  • Correspondent: Not available in provided text.
  • Context: Internal transfer within the Intellectual Ventures patent assertion ecosystem.

• 2023-08-15 (executed) / recorded 2023-08-15

  • Conveyance: Reassignment (Release by Secured Party)
  • Assignor: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES FUND 83 LLC
  • Assignee: MONUMENT PEAK VENTURES, LLC
  • Correspondent: Not available in provided text.
  • Context: Transfer of interest, likely a sale of the patent from the Intellectual Ventures portfolio to another entity.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 7260587
    2003 : Application filed by Eastman Kodak
    2007 : Patent granted
    2012 : Assigned to CITICORP (Security Interest)
    2013 : Released to Kodak Entities
         : Assigned to Intellectual Ventures Fund 83 LLC
         : Assigned to Intellectual Ventures II LLC
    2023 : Assigned to Monument Peak Ventures LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present.
   • The patent was transferred to Intellectual Ventures Fund 83 LLC (2013-04-10) and Intellectual Ventures II LLC (2013-05-28), both known patent licensing/assertion entities operating via shell companies. The subsequent transfer to Monument Peak Ventures, LLC (2023-08-15) also fits this pattern, as Monument Peak Ventures, LLC is identified as a patent asserter.
2. Known asserter in the chain — Present.
   • Intellectual Ventures Fund 83 LLC (2013-04-10) and Intellectual Ventures II LLC (2013-05-28) are well-known patent assertion entities. Monument Peak Ventures, LLC (2023-08-15) is also identified as an NPE.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Unclear.
   • Correspondent information is not available in the provided authoritative text.
4. Cascading transfers — Present.
   • Multiple consecutive assignments occurred in a short period in 2013: from Eastman Kodak Company to Intellectual Ventures Fund 83 LLC (2013-04-10) and then to Intellectual Ventures II LLC (2013-05-28), all within two months. This followed a security interest transfer and release earlier in 2012-2013.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present.
   • The transfer to Intellectual Ventures Fund 83 LLC occurred on 2013-04-10, and to Intellectual Ventures II LLC on 2013-05-28. The first listed litigation, Intellectual Ventures v. Capital One, was filed on July 3, 2013. Both transfers happened within three months of the first recorded lawsuit related to the patent.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Present.
   • Eastman Kodak Company, the original assignee, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in January 2012. The assignment to Intellectual Ventures Fund 83 LLC in April 2013 occurred during or shortly after Kodak's bankruptcy proceedings and its sale of patent assets.
7. Privateering — Not present.
   • There is no information to suggest privateering. The transfer from Eastman Kodak to Intellectual Ventures appears to be an outright sale of assets during bankruptcy, not an arrangement for assertion on Kodak's behalf.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present.
   • The current assignee, Monument Peak Ventures, LLC, is a known patent asserter, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence
This patent exhibits multiple strong NPE signals: it was acquired from Eastman Kodak during their bankruptcy fire-sale (2013-04-10), transferred to a known patent assertion entity (Intellectual Ventures II LLC, 2013-05-28), and subsequently to another identified NPE (Monument Peak Ventures, LLC, 2023-08-15). Furthermore, the transfers to the Intellectual Ventures entities occurred less than three months before the first recorded infringement lawsuit related to the patent.

Verification link: USPTO Assignment Center Search for US7260587