Assignment history

Inventors

• Subramonian Shankar (American Megatrends, Inc.)
• Jacob Narey (American Megatrends, Inc.)
• Will Gysin (American Megatrends, Inc.)

Original assignee

The original assignee was American Megatrends, Inc. ("AMI"). AMI is a multinational technology company that develops and manufactures BIOS firmware, motherboards, and other computer hardware and software. They shipped products embodying the claims as a primary line of business. AMI is currently operating.

Assignment timeline

• 2010-05-20 (executed) / recorded 2010-05-25 — Reel 024437/0607
  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: Subramonian Shankar, Jacob Narey, Will Gysin
  • Assignee: AMERICAN MEGATRENDS, INC.
  • Correspondent: AMERICAN MEGATRENDS, INC., 5555 OAKBROOK PKWY, SUITE 200, NORCROSS, GEORGIA, UNITED STATES, 30093
  • Context: Original assignment from inventors to employer.
• 2019-02-11 (executed) / recorded 2019-04-15 — Reel 049091/0973
  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: AMERICAN MEGATRENDS, INC.
  • Assignee: AMERICAN MEGATRENDS INTERNATIONAL, LLC
  • Correspondent: MICHAEL BEST & FRIEDRICH LLP, 790 N WATER ST, SUITE 2500, MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, UNITED STATES, 53202
  • Context: Entity conversion.
• 2019-04-01 (executed) / recorded 2019-05-06 — Reel 049087/0266
  • Conveyance: Security Interest
  • Assignor: AMERICAN MEGATRENDS INTERNATIONAL, LLC
  • Assignee: MIDCAP FINANCIAL TRUST, AS COLLATERAL AGENT
  • Correspondent: ROPES & GRAY LLP, 1211 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES, 10036
  • Context: Securitization (granting a security interest in the patent).
• 2019-03-08 (executed) / recorded 2020-04-14 — Reel 052395/0287
  • Conveyance: Assignment
  • Assignor: AMERICAN MEGATRENDS INTERNATIONAL, LLC
  • Assignee: AMZETTA TECHNOLOGIES, LLC
  • Correspondent: AMERICAN MEGATRENDS, INC., 5555 OAKBROOK PKWY, SUITE 200, NORCROSS, GEORGIA, UNITED STATES, 30093. This correspondent also appears on reel 024437/0607 for the original assignment.
  • Context: Acquisition.
• 2024-10-17 (executed) / recorded 2024-10-17 — Reel 069205/0795
  • Conveyance: Release by Secured Party
  • Assignor: MIDCAP FINANCIAL TRUST
  • Assignee: AMERICAN MEGATRENDS INTERNATIONAL, LLC
  • Correspondent: ROPES & GRAY LLP, 1211 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES, 10036. This correspondent also appears on reel 049087/0266 for the security interest.
  • Context: Release of security interest.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8510543
    2010 : Filed by Inventors to AMI
    2013 : Issued
    2019 : AMI to AMI International LLC
         : AMI International LLC to Midcap Fin Trust
    2020 : AMI International LLC to Amzetta Tech LLC
    2024 : Midcap Fin Trust release to AMI International

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — unclear. While Amzetta Technologies, LLC could potentially be a licensing-only entity, there is no direct evidence from the assignment records themselves (e.g., registered agent address, specific naming conventions, or noted lack of products) to definitively categorize it as a shell entity. The original assignee, American Megatrends, Inc., is an operating company.
2. Known asserter in the chain — not present. None of the assignees (American Megatrends, Inc., American Megatrends International, LLC, Midcap Financial Trust, Amzetta Technologies, LLC) are widely recognized on public NPE lists such as those from RPX or Unified Patents.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — present. The correspondent "AMERICAN MEGATRENDS, INC., 5555 OAKBROOK PKWY, SUITE 200, NORCROSS, GEORGIA, UNITED STATES, 30093" appears on both the initial assignment from the inventors (Reel 024437/0607, recorded 2010-05-25) and the assignment to Amzetta Technologies, LLC (Reel 052395/0287, recorded 2020-04-14). Additionally, "ROPES & GRAY LLP, 1211 AVENUE OF THE AMERICAS, NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES, 10036" appears on both the security interest (Reel 049087/0266, recorded 2019-05-06) and the release of security interest (Reel 069205/0795, recorded 2024-10-17).
4. Cascading transfers — not present. While there were three transfers within a 13-month period (Feb 2019 - Apr 2020), these do not appear to be consecutive assignments through chained LLCs aiming to obscure ownership or facilitate quick assertion. One was an internal entity conversion, one was a security interest, and the other was an acquisition.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — not present. There is no indication of litigation for this patent, and thus no pre-litigation transfer can be identified.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present. There is no evidence from the assignment records or general knowledge that American Megatrends, Inc. or any subsequent assignee in the chain underwent bankruptcy proceedings that led to the sale of this patent.
7. Privateering — unclear. While the transfer to Amzetta Technologies, LLC, an entity whose specific business operations are not detailed in the assignment records, could potentially be part of a privateering arrangement, there is no public evidence (e.g., SEC filings or journalistic coverage) to confirm this.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — not present. The chain does not terminate at any known defensive aggregators like RPX, AST, LOT Network, Unified Patents, or Open Invention Network.

Verdict

Insufficient data. While there is a repeat correspondent (AMERICAN MEGATRENDS, INC. as correspondent for the original assignment and the transfer to Amzetta Technologies LLC, per reels 024437/0607 and 052395/0287), this alone is not enough to definitively label Amzetta Technologies LLC as an NPE with high or moderate confidence. The corporate nature of Amzetta Technologies, LLC and its assertion strategy are not sufficiently detailed in the publicly available assignment records.

For verification, see the USPTO Assignment Center search for US8510543: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/