Assignment history

Inventors

• Robert A. Kennewick (VoiceBox Technologies Corp)
• David Locke (VoiceBox Technologies Corp)
• Michael R. Kennewick, SR. (VoiceBox Technologies Corp)
• Michael R. Kennewick, JR. (VoiceBox Technologies Corp)
• Richard Kennewick (VoiceBox Technologies Corp)
• Tom Freeman (VoiceBox Technologies Corp)

Original assignee

VoiceBox Technologies Corp. was the original assignee. VoiceBox Technologies developed and shipped products related to conversational AI and natural language understanding, primarily for automotive and consumer electronics industries. Their primary line of business was speech recognition and natural language processing software. VoiceBox Technologies Corp. was acquired by Nuance Communications, Inc. in 2018. Nuance Communications, Inc. was subsequently acquired by Microsoft in 2022.

Assignment timeline

• 2005-07-06 (executed) / recorded 2005-07-28 — Reel 016766/0569

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: LOCKE, DAVID, KENNEWICK, RICHARD, FREEMAN, TOM, KENNEWICK, ROBERT A., KENNEWICK, JR., MICHAEL R., KENNEWICK, SR., MICHAEL R.
  • Assignee: VOICEBOX TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
  • Correspondent: VOICEBOX TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
  • Context: Internal reorg

• 2014-04-07 (executed) / recorded 2014-04-14 — Reel 030999/0472

  • Conveyance: Merger
  • Assignor: VOICEBOX TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
  • Assignee: VOICEBOX TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL R. KENNEWICK, ESQ.
  • Context: Internal reorg

• 2015-01-14 (executed) / recorded 2015-01-26 — Reel 032646/0993

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: VOICEBOX TECHNOLOGIES CORPORATION
  • Assignee: NUANCE COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL R. KENNEWICK, ESQ., K&L GATES LLP
  • Context: Acquisition

• 2021-05-10 (executed) / recorded 2021-05-27 — Reel 056461/0615

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: NUANCE COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
  • Assignee: VOICE INVENTIONS, LLC
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL R. KENNEWICK, K & L GATES LLP
  • Context: Transfer-to-asserter. This correspondent also appeared on 2015-01-14 / 2015-01-26 and 2014-04-07 / 2014-04-14 assignments.

• 2022-08-16 (executed) / recorded 2022-09-02 — Reel 060046/0858

  • Conveyance: Assignment of Assignors Interest
  • Assignor: VOICE INVENTIONS, LLC
  • Assignee: DIALECT, LLC
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL R. KENNEWICK, K & L GATES LLP
  • Context: Transfer-to-asserter. This correspondent also appeared on 2021-05-10 / 2021-05-27, 2015-01-14 / 2015-01-26 and 2014-04-07 / 2014-04-14 assignments.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 7398209
    2005 : Assigned to VoiceBox Technologies Inc
    2008 : Patent issued
    2014 : Assigned to VoiceBox Technologies Corp
    2015 : Acquired by Nuance Communications Inc
    2021 : Assigned to Voice Inventions LLC
    2022 : Assigned to Dialect LLC
         : Litigation initiated

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — present. The assignment from Nuance Communications, Inc. to Voice Inventions, LLC (Reel 056461/0615, 2021-05-10 / 2021-05-27) and subsequently to Dialect, LLC (Reel 060046/0858, 2022-08-16 / 2022-09-02) indicates a transfer from an operating company to entities likely focused on licensing. Voice Inventions, LLC and Dialect, LLC do not appear to have product lines, and the names suggest intellectual property holding.
2. Known asserter in the chain — present. Dialect, LLC is listed by Unified Patents as a high-frequency plaintiff and an NPE. Voice Inventions, LLC is also associated with patent assertion activities.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — present. Michael R. Kennewick of K & L Gates LLP served as the correspondent for the assignments on Reel 030999/0472 (2014-04-07 / 2014-04-14), Reel 032646/0993 (2015-01-14 / 2015-01-26), Reel 056461/0615 (2021-05-10 / 2021-05-27), and Reel 060046/0858 (2022-08-16 / 2022-09-02).
4. Cascading transfers — present. There are two consecutive assignments within a short timeframe: Nuance to Voice Inventions LLC (2021-05-10) and Voice Inventions LLC to Dialect LLC (2022-08-16), a span of just over 15 months between the execution dates. Both transfers also utilize the same correspondent, Michael R. Kennewick.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — present. The patent was assigned to Dialect, LLC on 2022-08-16 (executed) / 2022-09-02 (recorded). Litigation activity involving this patent (2:23-cv-00061 in Texas Eastern District Court) was filed on 2023-01-26, less than six months after the transfer.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present.
7. Privateering — unclear. While the patent moved from an operating company to an NPE, there is no explicit public information indicating an agreement where Nuance (or Microsoft) is funding Dialect's assertions against specific competitors.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — not present.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence. The presence of multiple strong signals, including transfers to known asserters (Voice Inventions, LLC and Dialect, LLC), the use of shell-like entities as assignees, cascading transfers between these entities, a repeat correspondent across several transfers, and a pre-litigation transfer, strongly indicates an NPE assertion pattern. Specifically, the transfer to Dialect, LLC on 2022-08-16 (Reel 060046/0858), followed by litigation within six months, is a clear indicator of a patent assertion strategy.

Verify at: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/