Assignment history

Inventors

The sole named inventor for US patent 8515925 is Theodore S. Rappaport. At the time of the patent's filing on June 6, 2012, the original assignee was listed as "Individual," which is understood to be Theodore S. Rappaport himself. His primary employer at the time was likely within academia (he is a prominent professor in wireless communications), but the patent was filed as an individual rather than through a university or corporate entity initially. No unusual patterns of all inventors departing the original assignee are determinable, as he is the sole inventor.

Original assignee

The original assignee listed on the patent application (US13/490,133) filed on June 6, 2012, was "Individual." This refers to the inventor, Theodore S. Rappaport.

Based on available information, it is not determinable that Theodore S. Rappaport, as an individual, shipped products embodying the claims of US8515925. His primary line of business is academic research and teaching in wireless communications. His current status as an individual inventor and academic is active. The patent was later assigned through a series of transfers, with the current assignee being Massively Broadband LLC.

Assignment timeline

Based on the Google Patents legal events and assuming these reflect the USPTO assignment records, the following assignments are recorded:

• 2014-04-09 (recorded) — Reel/Frame not explicitly available from Google Patents

  • Conveyance: Assignment (Reassignment from a company to an individual)
  • Assignor: TELISITE CORPORATION
  • Assignee: RAPPAPORT, THEODORE S.
  • Correspondent: Not specified in the provided information.
  • Context: Transfer from a corporate entity, Telisite Corporation, back to the individual inventor. This suggests an internal reorganization or a consolidation of assets by the inventor.

• 2024-12-31 (recorded) — Reel/Frame not explicitly available from Google Patents

  • Conveyance: Assignment (Reassignment from an individual to an LLC)
  • Assignor: RAPPAPORT, THEODORE S.
  • Assignee: MASSIVELY BROADBAND LLC
  • Correspondent: Not specified in the provided information.
  • Context: Transfer from the individual inventor to a new entity, Massively Broadband LLC. This often precedes assertion activities.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8515925
    2012 : Filed by Individual Inventor
    2013 : Patent Issued
    2014 : Assigned from Telisite to Inventor
    2024 : Assigned from Inventor to Massively Broadband LLC
    2025 : US case filed in Texas Eastern
         : PTAB IPR2026-00032 filed

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The assignment on 2024-12-31 from Theodore S. Rappaport to Massively Broadband LLC (assignee) is immediately followed by litigation. Massively Broadband LLC does not appear to have a clear commercial product line or widely known operating business that directly embodies the patent claims. This, coupled with immediate litigation, strongly suggests it functions as a licensing or assertion entity. The company's name itself, while sounding like an operating company, lacks clear evidence of products.

2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. While Massively Broadband LLC is not explicitly listed on the provided general NPE lists (Acacia Research Corp, Marathon Patent Group, etc.), its involvement in active litigation (Texas Eastern District Court case 2:25-cv-00608 and PTAB IPR2026-00032) shortly after acquiring the patent indicates it is an active patent asserter. Unified Patents lists the IPR, which implies they have identified Massively Broadband LLC as an asserting entity.

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Unclear. Correspondent information (attorney name, firm, address) is not provided in the Google Patents legal events, so it is not possible to determine if the same correspondent recurs.

4. Cascading transfers — Not present. There are only two recorded assignments, separated by a decade. This does not indicate multiple consecutive assignments within a short period.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present. The assignment to Massively Broadband LLC occurred on 2024-12-31. The US district court case (2:25-cv-00608) was filed in 2025, and PTAB case IPR2026-00032 was filed on 2025-10-12. Both litigation events occurred within six months of the patent transfer to Massively Broadband LLC. This is a strong indicator that the transfer was arranged to enable assertion.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. There is no indication of any assignor filing for bankruptcy.

7. Privateering — Unclear. While the pattern of transferring to an NPE for assertion is present, there is no public information provided to determine if an operating company is covertly using Massively Broadband LLC to assert against competitors.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The chain terminates with Massively Broadband LLC, an asserting entity, not a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The verdict is high confidence NPE due to the strong signals of a shell-entity transfer and a pre-litigation transfer. The assignment of the patent to Massively Broadband LLC on 2024-12-31 was immediately followed by the filing of a district court case (2:25-cv-00608) and a PTAB IPR (IPR2026-00032) in 2025. This rapid succession of transfer and assertion, coupled with no public evidence of Massively Broadband LLC being an operating company that ships products embodying the claims, strongly indicates it is a patent assertion entity.

Verification via USPTO Assignment Center search for US8515925: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/ (Note: direct reel/frame numbers not available from Google Patents for citation in timeline, but the dates and assignor/assignee information align with the listed Google Patents events).