Assignment history

Inventors

• Guillermo J. Rozas - At the time of filing (priority date 2005-04-07, application filing 2008-05-15), Guillermo J. Rozas was likely employed by Transmeta Corporation, which was the predecessor entity to Transmeta LLC, the initial corporate assignee of the patent. Rozas is listed as an inventor on numerous patents assigned to Transmeta.

Original assignee

The patent application (US12/121,531) initially listed "Individual" as the original assignee. However, before the patent's issuance, it was assigned to Transmeta LLC. Transmeta Corporation, the predecessor to Transmeta LLC, was a semiconductor company known for developing x86-compatible microprocessors (Crusoe and Efficeon). Transmeta ceased its primary business of chip design and sales around 2005, transitioning to an intellectual property licensing model. Therefore, while Transmeta Corporation had shipped products, Transmeta LLC, as the first corporate assignee, primarily operated as an IP licensing entity. Transmeta Corporation's assets, including patent portfolios, were subsequently acquired by other entities. Transmeta LLC's current status is likely dissolved or inactive, as its assets were largely acquired by Intellectual Ventures.

Assignment timeline

• 2009-01-27 (executed) / recorded 2009-03-26 — Reel 022454/0522

  • Conveyance: MERGER
  • Assignor: TRANSMETA CORPORATION
  • Assignee: TRANSMETA LLC
  • Correspondent: Not clearly listed on record document.
  • Context: Transfer due to corporate merger, likely part of Transmeta's pivot to an IP licensing model.

• 2009-01-28 (executed) / recorded 2009-09-22 — Reel 023268/0771

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: TRANSMETA LLC
  • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURE FUNDING LLC
  • Correspondent: Russ & Russ P.C., 2100 SWIFT DR. SUITE 100, OAK BROOK, IL 60523. This correspondent is a known patent assertion entity filing firm.
  • Context: Acquisition of Transmeta's patent portfolio by Intellectual Ventures.

• 2015-08-27 (executed) / recorded 2015-09-29 — Reel 036711/0160

  • Conveyance: MERGER
  • Assignor: INTELLECTUAL VENTURE FUNDING LLC
  • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES HOLDING 81 LLC
  • Correspondent: Morrison & Foerster LLP, 425 Market St, San Francisco, CA 94105. This correspondent firm also appears in later assignments in this chain.
  • Context: Internal reorganization within Intellectual Ventures entities.

• 2015-08-27 (executed) / recorded 2015-10-06 — Reel 036797/0356

  • Conveyance: CORRECTIVE ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: INTELLECTUAL VENTURE FUNDING LLC
  • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES HOLDING 81 LLC
  • Correspondent: Morrison & Foerster LLP, 425 Market St, San Francisco, CA 94105. This correspondent firm also appears in other assignments in this chain.
  • Context: Corrective internal reorganization within Intellectual Ventures entities.

• 2024-01-16 (executed) / recorded 2024-01-16 — Reel 066139/0987

  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNORS INTEREST
  • Assignor: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES HOLDING 81 LLC
  • Assignee: INTELLECTUAL VENTURES II LLC
  • Correspondent: Morrison & Foerster LLP, C/O INTELLECTUAL VENTURES, LLC, 1375 BROADWAY, SUITE 1000, NEW YORK, NY 10018. This correspondent firm also appears in other assignments in this chain.
  • Context: Internal reorganization within Intellectual Ventures entities, likely in preparation for litigation.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8898395
    2005 : Priority date
    2008 : Filed
    2009 : Transferred to Transmeta LLC
         : Assigned to Intellectual Venture Funding LLC
    2014 : Patent issued
    2015 : Assigned to Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC
         : Corrective assignment to IV Holding 81 LLC
    2024 : Assigned to Intellectual Ventures II LLC
         : First infringement suit filed

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present. The patent was transferred to Intellectual Venture Funding LLC (reel 023268/0771), then to Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC (reel 036711/0160), and finally to Intellectual Ventures II LLC (reel 066139/0987). These are all known shell entities associated with Intellectual Ventures, a prominent NPE.

2. Known asserter in the chain — Present. Intellectual Venture Funding LLC, Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC, and Intellectual Ventures II LLC are all entities of Intellectual Ventures, a widely recognized Non-Practicing Entity (NPE).

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present. Russ & Russ P.C., a firm often associated with NPE filings, is the correspondent for the 2009-01-28 assignment (reel 023268/0771). Morrison & Foerster LLP is the correspondent for the 2015-08-27 assignments (reel 036711/0160 and 036797/0356) and the 2024-01-16 assignment (reel 066139/0987), demonstrating recurrence of this firm across multiple transfers within the Intellectual Ventures chain.

4. Cascading transfers — Present. There were two consecutive transfers within Intellectual Ventures entities in 2015 (recorded 2015-09-29 and 2015-10-06), both from Intellectual Venture Funding LLC to Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC, handled by the same correspondent.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — Present. The assignment to Intellectual Ventures II LLC was executed and recorded on 2024-01-16 (reel 066139/0987). Infringement suits related to this patent were filed on 2024-02-23 (case 6:24-cv-00188) and 2024-04-10 (case 1:24-cv-00390) in the Texas Western District Court, both within six months of this transfer.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not present. While Transmeta Corporation underwent significant business changes and sold its IP, the available records do not indicate a formal bankruptcy fire-sale of this specific patent.

7. Privateering — Unclear. Transmeta Corporation transitioned to an IP licensing model and sold its portfolio to Intellectual Ventures. While this could be interpreted as a form of privateering, direct evidence in SEC filings or specific reporting confirming an ongoing arrangement for assertion on Transmeta's behalf against competitors is not available in the provided information.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not present. The patent is currently assigned to Intellectual Ventures II LLC, an NPE, and not to a defensive aggregator.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

This verdict is supported by multiple strong signals: the presence of known NPE entities (Intellectual Ventures Funding LLC, Intellectual Ventures Holding 81 LLC, Intellectual Ventures II LLC) in the assignment chain, the use of a repeat correspondent firm (Morrison & Foerster LLP) for multiple transfers within the NPE structure, and a clear pre-litigation transfer to the current asserting entity (Intellectual Ventures II LLC) shortly before infringement lawsuits were filed in 2024.

USPTO Assignment Center Search for US8898395