Patent 8027326

Assignment history

Inventors, original assignee, and the chain of ownership recorded with the USPTO — including the correspondent attorney who recorded each assignment, since shell-LLC chains often share one repeat-player attorney even when the entity names look unrelated. Surfaces NPE / patent-troll patterns: shell-entity transfers, known asserters in the chain, repeat correspondent fingerprints, pre-litigation assignments, and bankruptcy fire-sales.

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Assignment history

Inventors, original assignee, and the chain of ownership recorded with the USPTO — including the correspondent attorney who recorded each assignment, since shell-LLC chains often share one repeat-player attorney even when the entity names look unrelated. Surfaces NPE / patent-troll patterns: shell-entity transfers, known asserters in the chain, repeat correspondent fingerprints, pre-litigation assignments, and bankruptcy fire-sales.

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Inventors

  • Daniel D. Shearer, III (Employer: Conexant Systems, Inc. at time of first assignment after filing)
  • Mark A. Webster (Employer: Conexant Systems, Inc. at time of first assignment after filing)

Note: While Xocyst Transfer AG LLC is listed as the applicant and original assignee on Google Patents, the first recorded assignment is from the inventors to Conexant Systems, Inc., suggesting they were employed by Conexant. The initial applicant Xocyst Transfer AG LLC appears to be related to the inventors' employer or an early holding entity prior to formal assignment to Conexant Systems, Inc.

Original assignee

The entity named on the issued patent is US8027326B2 - Xocyst Transfer AG LLC, based on Google Patents' "Original Assignee" field. However, the first recorded assignment from the inventors is to Conexant Systems, Inc. The patent itself lists Xocyst Transfer AG LLC as the applicant.

Xocyst Transfer AG LLC: It is unclear if Xocyst Transfer AG LLC ever shipped a product embodying the claims. The name "Transfer AG LLC" suggests an entity involved in asset transfer rather than product development. Its primary line of business appears to be intellectual property holding or transfer. Based on the assignment chain, it was acquired or merged into Intellectual Ventures I LLC. Its current status is likely inactive or subsumed under Intellectual Ventures I LLC.

Assignment timeline

The USPTO Assignment Center (https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/) shows the following records for US Patent 8027326:

  • 2005-04-28 (executed) / recorded 2005-05-18 — Reel 016335/0631

    • Conveyance: Assignment
    • Assignor: Daniel D. Shearer, III, Mark A. Webster
    • Assignee: CONEXANT SYSTEMS, INC.
    • Correspondent: CONEXANT SYSTEMS, INC., 4000 MacArthur Blvd., Newport Beach, CA 92660.
    • Context: Transfer of invention from individual inventors to their apparent employer.

  • 2006-11-01 (executed) / recorded 2006-11-22 — Reel 018617/0447

    • Conveyance: Security Agreement
    • Assignor: CONEXANT SYSTEMS, INC.
    • Assignee: BANK OF NEW YORK TRUST COMPANY, N.A.
    • Correspondent: GIBSON, DUNN & CRUTCHER LLP, F. John Burpo, 333 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90071.
    • Context: Securitization of intellectual property assets by Conexant Systems, Inc.

  • 2008-09-30 (executed) / recorded 2008-10-27 — Reel 021966/0335

    • Conveyance: Release
    • Assignor: THE BANK OF NEW YORK MELLON TRUST COMPANY, N.A. (F/K/A THE BANK OF NEW YORK TRUST COMPANY, N.A.)
    • Assignee: CONEXANT SYSTEMS, INC.
    • Correspondent: GIBSON, DUNN & CRUTCHER LLP, F. John Burpo, 333 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90071. This correspondent recurs in this chain.
    • Context: Release of security interest, returning full rights to Conexant Systems, Inc.

  • 2009-01-02 (executed) / recorded 2009-01-20 — Reel 022204/0024

    • Conveyance: Assignment
    • Assignor: CONEXANT SYSTEMS, INC.
    • Assignee: XOCYST TRANSFER AG L.L.C.
    • Correspondent: KNOBBE, MARTENS, OLSON & BEAR, LLP, JONATHAN W. YOO, 2040 Main St., 14th Floor, Irvine, CA 92614.
    • Context: Transfer of patent from an operating company (Conexant) to a holding entity (Xocyst Transfer AG L.L.C.).

  • 2011-07-22 (executed) / recorded 2011-09-06 — Reel 027209/0073

    • Conveyance: Merger
    • Assignor: XOCYST TRANSFER AG L.L.C.
    • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES I LLC
    • Correspondent: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES, 1475 50th Way NE, Bellevue, WA 98007.
    • Context: Acquisition of Xocyst Transfer AG L.L.C. by Intellectual Ventures I LLC.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8027326
    2005 : Inventors to Conexant Systems
    2006 : Conexant to Bank of NY (Security)
    2008 : Bank of NY releases Conexant
    2009 : Conexant to Xocyst Transfer AG LLC
    2011 : Xocyst to Intellectual Ventures I LLC
    2011 : Patent issued
    2024 : First infringement suit filed

NPE / troll-pattern signals

  1. Shell-entity transfer — Present.

    • 2009-01-02 (executed) / recorded 2009-01-20 (Reel 022204/0024): Conexant Systems, Inc. (an operating company) transferred the patent to XOCYST TRANSFER AG L.L.C. The name "Transfer AG L.L.C." itself suggests an IP holding or transfer entity rather than an operating company.
    • 2011-07-22 (executed) / recorded 2011-09-06 (Reel 027209/0073): XOCYST TRANSFER AG L.L.C. was merged into INTELLECTUAL VENTURES I LLC, a well-known patent licensing and assertion entity.

  2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. INTELLECTUAL VENTURES I LLC is the current assignee. Intellectual Ventures is widely recognized as a patent assertion entity (PAE) or non-practicing entity (NPE). This is a strong signal.

  3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present.

    • GIBSON, DUNN & CRUTCHER LLP, F. John Burpo, 333 South Grand Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90071, appears on:
    • While this firm handles a variety of legal work, its repeated appearance for both security agreement and release for a major operating company like Conexant is noteworthy in this context.

  4. Cascading transfers — Unclear. There are no multiple consecutive assignments through chained LLCs in a short timeframe (under 24 months) where assignees share correspondent addresses or common principals that are clearly indicative of cascading transfers designed for assertion. The transfers involve an operating company, a bank for securitization, and then two different holding companies over a longer period.

  5. Pre-litigation transfer — Not present. The patent was assigned to Intellectual Ventures I LLC on 2011-07-22 (executed), recorded 2011-09-06. The earliest identified litigation for this patent is a US case filed in Texas Western District Court (7:24-cv-00277) in 2024, approximately 13 years after the transfer to Intellectual Ventures.

  6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. There is no indication from the assignment records or Google Patents that Conexant Systems, Inc. or Xocyst Transfer AG L.L.C. filed for bankruptcy at the time of their respective transfers.

  7. Privateering — Unclear. While Conexant Systems, Inc. transferred the patent to Xocyst Transfer AG L.L.C., which then went to Intellectual Ventures, there's no explicit evidence in the provided information (SEC filings, Patent Progress/EFF coverage) to confirm that Intellectual Ventures is asserting this patent on behalf of Conexant against Conexant's direct competitors.

  8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The chain ends with Intellectual Ventures I LLC, which is a known patent assertion entity, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence. The presence of Intellectual Ventures I LLC as the current assignee, a widely recognized patent assertion entity, is a strong indicator. The transfer from an operating company (Conexant Systems, Inc.) to an IP holding entity (Xocyst Transfer AG L.L.C.) and subsequently to Intellectual Ventures I LLC (Reel 022204/0024 recorded 2009-01-20 and Reel 027209/0073 recorded 2011-09-06) further supports this conclusion. The numerous litigation cases associated with this patent, as listed on Google Patents, also align with a patent assertion strategy.

Verification: USPTO Assignment Center for US8027326

Generated 5/15/2026, 6:48:33 AM