Assignment history

Inventors

The named inventors are John Christopher Harvey and James William Cuddihy. The patent application was filed by Personalized Media Communications LLC (PMC). The inventors assigned their interest in the patent to Personalized Media Communications, L.L.C. on September 22, 2000 (Reel 070263/0001), after the patent's filing date of June 2, 1995. Personalized Media Communications was founded in 1981 by John C. Harvey, indicating a direct association between at least one inventor and the original assignee.

Original assignee

The original assignee named on the issued patent is Personalized Media Communications LLC (PMC). PMC's primary line of business is patent licensing and assertion. They do not appear to ship products embodying the claims themselves, but rather license and litigate their extensive patent portfolio, which they describe as foundational inventions in media distribution and network control. PMC has been involved in significant patent litigation, including against Apple, concerning signal processing and digital rights management technology. As of today, Personalized Media Communications LLC appears to be an active entity focusing on patent monetization.

Assignment timeline

• 2000-09-22 (executed) / recorded 2000-10-18 — Reel 070263/0001
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: HARVEY, JOHN C. and CUDDIHY, JAMES W.
  • Assignee: PERSONALIZED MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS, L.L.C.
  • Correspondent: W. REDDY, ESQ. LAW OFFICES OF P. REDDY, P.C. 175 GREENWICH AVENUE GREENWICH CT 06830
  • Context: Transfer of inventor rights to the original assignee.
• 2025-06-09 (executed) / recorded 2025-07-16 — Reel 070263/0002
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: PERSONALIZED MEDIA COMMUNICATIONS, L.L.C.
  • Assignee: CONTENTNEXUS LLC
  • Correspondent: ROBERT J. RANDO, ESQ. LAW OFFICES OF ROBERT J. RANDO, P.C. 10 BANK STREET, SUITE 560 WHITE PLAINS NY 10606
  • Context: Transfer from original assignee to a new entity.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8566868
    1995 : Filed by Personalized Media Communications LLC
    2000 : Inventors assign to PMC
    2013 : Issued to PMC
    2025 : Assigned to Contentnexus LLC
    2026 : Contentnexus files litigation

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — present. The patent was transferred from Personalized Media Communications, L.L.C. to Contentnexus LLC (Reel 070263/0002, executed 2025-06-09 / recorded 2025-07-16). Contentnexus LLC was created two days before this transfer and is described as a "patent holding entity focused on monetizing IP assets" and operating under a "patent monetization professional".
2. Known asserter in the chain — present. Personalized Media Communications LLC (the original assignee) has a documented history of asserting patents in litigation against major technology companies like Apple. Contentnexus LLC (the current assignee) is also described as a "patent holding entity focused on monetizing IP assets" and has filed multiple patent infringement lawsuits in the Eastern District of Texas since its formation.
3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — not present. The correspondent for the first assignment (Reel 070263/0001) was W. Reddy, Esq. of Law Offices of P. Reddy, P.C. The correspondent for the second assignment (Reel 070263/0002) was Robert J. Rando, Esq. of Law Offices of Robert J. Rando, P.C. These are different individuals and firms.
4. Cascading transfers — not present. There are only two recorded assignments in the patent's chain, which occurred 25 years apart, not within a short timeframe.
5. Pre-litigation transfer — present. The patent was assigned to Contentnexus LLC on June 9, 2025 (Reel 070263/0002). Contentnexus LLC began filing litigation involving this patent (and others) in the Eastern District of Texas in October 2025 (e.g., ContentNexus LLC v. Nuvyyo, Inc., filed 2025-10-01) and continued into 2026 (e.g., ContentNexus LLC v. Zinwell Corporation, dismissed Feb 2026; ContentNexus LLC v. Wipro, filed April 2026; ContentNexus LLC v. Hallmark Media United States, LLC, filed May 2026). This shows litigation commenced within 6 months of the assignment.
6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — not present. There is no indication in the provided information or search results that Personalized Media Communications LLC filed for bankruptcy.
7. Privateering — unclear. While PMC itself operated as a licensing entity, and Contentnexus is now asserting the patent, there is no explicit evidence from SEC filings or public coverage that PMC transferred this patent to Contentnexus specifically to assert on PMC's behalf against competitors, which is the defining characteristic of privateering.
8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — not present. The chain terminates with Contentnexus LLC, which is identified as a patent holding and asserting entity.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence. This verdict is supported by several strong signals. Both the original assignee, Personalized Media Communications LLC, and the current assignee, Contentnexus LLC, are identified as entities primarily engaged in patent licensing and assertion rather than product manufacturing. The transfer to Contentnexus LLC occurred shortly before Contentnexus began asserting this patent in litigation, indicating a pre-litigation transfer. Furthermore, Contentnexus LLC was formed just two days before the assignment and is associated with a known patent monetization professional, strongly suggesting a shell-entity transfer.

USPTO Assignment Center search: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/