US 8015495

Following a detailed analysis of U.S. Patent 8,015,495 and a search of publicly available legal dockets, this report provides a summary of the patent's key details and its legal status as of May 11, 2026.

Summary of U.S. Patent 8,015,495

Title: Centrifugal communication and collaboration method

Assignee: The current assignee of record is Sampo IP LLC. The original assignee was Groupserve IT Trust LLC.

Inventors:

• Theodore B. Achacoso
• D. Wayne Silby

Filing Date: February 28, 2003

Issue Date: September 6, 2011

Abstract:
The patent describes a method for facilitating communication and collaboration among a group of remote participants. The method involves receiving information from one participant over a network, "pushing" an access channel (such as a hyperlink) to at least one other participant, and then allowing that other participant to access the information by selectively activating the access channel. This "centrifugal" approach, where information is pushed out to users rather than requiring them to actively pull it from a central source, is the core of the invention.

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Plain-Language Overview of Independent Claims

U.S. Patent 8,015,495 has two independent claims, which define the core scope of the invention in legal terms.

Independent Claim 1: This claim outlines a method for asynchronous (not in real-time) group collaboration. In simple terms, the method works as follows:

1. Information for different group members (for example, a first and second participant) is stored on a server.
2. Notices, each containing a "selectively activatable element" (like a clickable link in an email or a notification), are sent to these participants.
3. When the first participant activates their element, they are given access to the information specifically intended for them, but the system prevents them from accessing the information meant for the second participant.
4. Similarly, when the second participant activates their element, they can access their designated information, but not the information for the first participant.
   The core idea is to facilitate collaboration by pushing relevant information to each user while filtering out what is not relevant to them.

Independent Claim 16: This claim describes a system designed to carry out the method of Claim 1. The system is comprised of:

1. A storage device (like a server) that holds the information for the different group participants.
2. A transmitter that sends out the notices with the activatable elements.
3. A receiver that gets messages back when a participant activates their element, which then grants access to the appropriate information while suppressing access to other information.
   Essentially, this claim protects the physical and logical components that work together to perform the "centrifugal communication" method.

Litigation and CAFC Docket Search

A search for litigation involving U.S. Patent 8,015,495 reveals that the patent has been asserted in multiple patent infringement lawsuits. The assignee, Sampo IP, LLC, has filed suits against numerous companies. For example, in 2013, Sampo IP, LLC, then a subsidiary of Marathon Patent Group, Inc., filed lawsuits against companies including E*Trade, Starbucks, Hewlett-Packard, Salesforce.com, and Dell, alleging infringement of this patent along with others in the same family.

A search of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) dockets for the year 2026 did not yield any specific results for U.S. Patent 8,015,495. This indicates that as of the current date, there do not appear to be any active, publicly docketed appeals concerning this patent before the CAFC for the specified year. However, this does not preclude the possibility of ongoing district court litigation or future appeals.

Disclaimer: This analysis is based on publicly available information and should not be considered legal advice. The legal status of a patent can change, and for authoritative information, official records from the USPTO and relevant courts should be consulted.