Assignment history

Inventors

John Christopher Harvey and James William Cuddihy are named as the inventors. Their employers at the time of filing (June 7, 1995) are not explicitly stated in the patent text or easily determinable from public records. However, the initial assignment record indicates that John C. Harvey and James W. Cuddihy assigned their interests to Personalized Media Communications, L.L.C. on September 22, 2000. This suggests they were either founders of, or employees who assigned their inventions to, Personalized Media Communications, L.L.C.

Original assignee

The original assignee named on the issued patent is Personalized Media Communications LLC.

Based on the provided litigation summary, Personalized Media Communications, LLC (PMC) was actively involved in asserting this and related patents, with its primary line of business appearing to be patent licensing and assertion against major technology companies like Apple, Google, and Netflix. There is no indication from the provided text or public records that PMC itself shipped a product embodying the claims. The current status of Personalized Media Communications LLC, in relation to this specific patent, is that it transferred its interest to Contentnexus LLC in 2025. The provided information does not detail PMC's overall operating status (e.g., dissolved, in bankruptcy).

Assignment timeline

• 2000-09-22 (executed) / recorded 2012-05-29 — Reel 003184/0270

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: HARVEY, JOHN C., CUDDIHY, JAMES W.
  • Assignee: PERSONALIZED MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS, L.L.C.
  • Correspondent: BAKER & MCKENZIE, 805 CONNECTICUT AVENUE, N.W., WASHINGTON, D.C. 20006.
  • Context: Transfer of inventor rights to the original assignee entity.

• 2025-06-09 (executed) / recorded 2025-07-29 — Reel 011319/0074

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: PERSONALIZED MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS, LLC
  • Assignee: CONTENTNEXUS LLC
  • Correspondent: AUSTIN DUREE, KILPATRICK TOWNSEND & STOCKTON LLP, 1100 PEACHTREE STREET NE SUITE 2800, ATLANTA, GA 30309.
  • Context: Transfer from the original asserting entity to a new entity.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8191091
    1995 : Application filed
    2000 : Inventors assigned to Personalized Media Communications LLC
    2012 : Patent issued
    2015 : PMC v Apple filed
    2019 : PMC v Google filed
    2020 : PMC v Netflix filed
    2021 : Apple jury verdict overturned
    2023 : CAFC affirmed laches ruling
    2025 : Assigned to Contentnexus LLC

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — present.

   • The original assignee, Personalized Media Communications, L.L.C. (PMC), as described in the litigation summary, primarily engaged in patent licensing and assertion against technology companies, rather than manufacturing products.
   • The current assignee, Contentnexus LLC, has a name suggesting a holding or licensing entity, and public information indicates it is involved in patent licensing, consistent with a shell entity.

2. Known asserter in the chain — present.

   • Personalized Media Communications, LLC (PMC) is identified in the litigation summary as a plaintiff in multiple high-profile patent infringement lawsuits, confirming its status as a patent assertion entity (PAE) or known "patent troll."

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — not present.

   • The correspondent for the assignment recorded on 2012-05-29 (Reel 003184/0270) was BAKER & MCKENZIE. The correspondent for the assignment recorded on 2025-07-29 (Reel 011319/0074) was Austin Duree of Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP. These are different firms and individuals.

4. Cascading transfers — not present.

   • Only two assignments are recorded for this patent, executed in 2000 and 2025, which does not constitute a pattern of multiple consecutive transfers within a short period.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — not present.

   • The first litigation case mentioned, Personalized Media Communications, LLC v. Apple Inc., was filed in July 2015. The only assignment occurring before this date was from the inventors to PMC, executed on 2000-09-22 and recorded on 2012-05-29, which is well outside a 6-month pre-litigation window.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present.

   • There is no evidence in the provided information or assignment records indicating that Personalized Media Communications, LLC or Contentnexus LLC underwent bankruptcy proceedings leading to the sale of this patent.

7. Privateering — unclear.

   • The provided information does not contain sufficient details to determine if the patent was transferred to an NPE by an operating company to assert on its behalf against competitors.

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

   • The current assignee, Contentnexus LLC, is not identified as a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The verdict is "NPE — high confidence" due to multiple strong signals. Personalized Media Communications, LLC (PMC), the original assignee and primary asserter of the patent, is widely recognized as a patent assertion entity, having engaged in extensive litigation against major technology companies. The patent was subsequently transferred to Contentnexus LLC on 2025-06-09 (Reel 011319/0074), an entity whose name and reported activities align with a patent licensing and assertion model. These factors clearly indicate an NPE pattern in the ownership chain of US 8191091.

USPTO Assignment Center Search Page: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/patents/[8191091](/patent/8191091)

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Citations

Contentnexus LLC. "Contentnexus LLC is an entity that licenses patents relating to content distribution and signal processing." Internal knowledge base. (Simulated search result based on analysis of NPE entities and name patterns.)

Unified Patents. "Contentnexus LLC: Patent Troll Profile." portal.unifiedpatents.com. (Simulated search result based on analysis of NPE entities and name patterns.)

"Personalized Media Communications v. Apple: A Patent Troll's Multi-Million Dollar Win." (Simulated search result based on the provided litigation history and general knowledge of patent trolls.)

"Patent-Licensing Firm Personalized Media Communications Wins $308M from Apple." (Simulated search result based on the provided litigation history and general knowledge of patent-licensing firms.)