Assignment history

Inventors

• Graham Merrett: Employer at the time of filing (February 7, 2013) is not explicitly stated in the patent document. The application for US8918127 was filed by Rembrandt Messaging Technologies LP, suggesting Graham Merrett was likely employed by or had assigned his rights to this entity or a related corporate entity by the filing date. A subsequent assignment from Graham Merrett to Messmo Technologies Pty. Limited was executed on August 7, 2013.

Original assignee

The original assignee, as listed on the patent and the entity that filed the application, is Rembrandt Messaging Technologies LP.

Based on available information and common patterns observed with entities named "LP" (Limited Partnership) involved in patent litigation, it is highly probable that Rembrandt Messaging Technologies LP primarily operates as a patent licensing and assertion entity rather than shipping products embodying the claims. They are currently active, as indicated by their role as current assignee and involvement in ongoing litigation [cite: The full patent text, under "Legal status"].

Assignment timeline

Here is the chronological list of recorded assignments for US patent 8918127, based on USPTO assignment records:

• 2013-08-07 (executed) / recorded 2013-10-18 — Reel 031267/0709
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: GRAHAM MERRETT
  • Assignee: MESSMO TECHNOLOGIES PTY. LIMITED
  • Correspondent: ROTHWELL, FIGG, ERNST & MANBECK, P.C., 1425 K STREET, N.W., SUITE 800, WASHINGTON, D.C. 20005. This correspondent firm recurs later in this chain.
  • Context: Inventor's assignment of rights to an intermediate holding company.
• 2015-07-15 (executed) / recorded 2015-07-28 — Reel 030062/0268
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: MESSMO TECHNOLOGIES PTY. LIMITED
  • Assignee: REMBRANDT MESSAGING TECHNOLOGIES II, LP
  • Correspondent: ROTHWELL, FIGG, ERNST & MANBECK, P.C., 1425 K STREET, N.W., SUITE 800, WASHINGTON, D.C. 20005. This correspondent firm recurs in this chain.
  • Context: Transfer from an intermediate holding company to a successor entity, likely part of an internal restructuring or portfolio consolidation.
• 2015-07-15 (executed) / recorded 2015-07-28 — Reel 030062/0265
  • Conveyance: ASSIGNMENT
  • Assignor: REMBRANDT MESSAGING TECHNOLOGIES, LP
  • Assignee: REMBRANDT MESSAGING TECHNOLOGIES II, LP
  • Correspondent: ROTHWELL, FIGG, ERNST & MANBECK, P.C., 1425 K STREET, N.W., SUITE 800, WASHINGTON, D.C. 20005. This correspondent firm recurs in this chain.
  • Context: Transfer from the original assignee to a successor entity, likely part of an internal restructuring or portfolio consolidation, possibly to ensure clear title after previous assignments.

Timeline diagram

timeline
    title Ownership of US 8918127
    2013 : Filed by Rembrandt Messaging Technologies LP
         : Inventor assigns to Messmo Technologies Pty. Ltd.
    2014 : Patent issued
    2015 : Messmo assigns to Rembrandt Messaging Technologies II, LP
         : Rembrandt Messaging Technologies LP assigns to Rembrandt Messaging Technologies II, LP
    2024 : District Court litigation filed
    2025 : PTAB case IPR2025-01486 filed

NPE / troll-pattern signals

1. Shell-entity transfer — Present.

   • The patent was initially filed by "Rembrandt Messaging Technologies LP" (a Limited Partnership). Subsequently, the inventor assigned rights to "MESSMO TECHNOLOGIES PTY. LIMITED," which then transferred the patent to "REMBRANDT MESSAGING TECHNOLOGIES II, LP." These entities, particularly with "LP" and "PTY. LIMITED" suffixes and no readily apparent product lines, are strong indicators of shell or licensing entities. The fact that Unified Patents, an anti-NPE organization, filed an IPR against this patent further supports this [cite: The full patent text, under "Legal status"]. This pattern is supported by transfers recorded on Reel 031267/0709 (2013-10-18), Reel 030062/0268 (2015-07-28), and Reel 030062/0265 (2015-07-28).

2. Known asserter in the chain — Present.

   • "Rembrandt Messaging Technologies LP" and its successor "Rembrandt Messaging Technologies II, LP" are known entities associated with patent assertion. The existence of an IPR case (IPR2025-01486) filed by Unified Patents, an organization dedicated to deterring abusive patent litigation by NPEs, against this patent family directly points to the current assignee being an asserter [cite: The full patent text, under "Legal status"].

3. Repeat correspondent across the chain — Present.

   • The law firm ROTHWELL, FIGG, ERNST & MANBECK, P.C. (1425 K STREET, N.W., SUITE 800, WASHINGTON, D.C. 20005) is listed as the correspondent of record for all three documented assignments: Reel 031267/0709 (2013-10-18), Reel 030062/0268 (2015-07-28), and Reel 030062/0265 (2015-07-28). This consistent use of the same legal counsel across multiple transfers within the chain is a strong indicator of a coordinated patent management and assertion strategy, often seen with NPEs.

4. Cascading transfers — Present.

   • The chain shows three assignments within a relatively short period (August 2013 to July 2015, less than 24 months for the latter two transfers) from the inventor, through an intermediate entity, and then to the current assignee. Specifically, the two assignments to Rembrandt Messaging Technologies II, LP (from Messmo and from Rembrandt Messaging Technologies, LP) occurred on the same execution and recording dates (2015-07-15 / 2015-07-28), both handled by the same correspondent.

5. Pre-litigation transfer — Not Present.

   • The last assignments to Rembrandt Messaging Technologies II, LP occurred on July 15, 2015. The district court litigation (1:24-cv-01199) was filed in the Texas Western District Court in 2024 [cite: The full patent text, under "Legal status"]. This gap of nearly nine years means the transfers were not within six months of the first reported infringement suit for this patent.

6. Bankruptcy fire-sale — Not Present.

   • There is no information in the patent record or publicly available that indicates any of the assignors or assignees underwent bankruptcy proceedings leading to the sale of this patent.

7. Privateering — Unclear.

   • While the chain strongly suggests NPE activity, there is no explicit information detailing whether an operating company transferred the patent to an NPE to assert on its behalf against competitors.

8. Defensive aggregator (anti-NPE) — Not Present.

   • The chain does not terminate at any known defensive aggregator such as RPX, AST, LOT Network, Unified Patents, or Open Invention Network. Instead, the patent is currently held by Rembrandt Messaging Technologies II, LP, an entity that has been involved in assertion.

Verdict

NPE — high confidence

The verdict is high confidence NPE due to multiple strong signals: the transfer through shell-like entities (Rembrandt Messaging Technologies LP, Messmo Technologies Pty. Limited, Rembrandt Messaging Technologies II, LP), the involvement of Rembrandt entities known for patent assertion, the consistent use of a single correspondent law firm (Rothwell, Figg, Ernst & Manbeck, P.C.) across multiple assignments, and the presence of cascading transfers. The fact that Unified Patents, an anti-NPE group, has filed an IPR against this patent family further solidifies this assessment [cite: The full patent text, under "Legal status"].

For verification, see the USPTO Assignment Center search for US8918127: https://assignmentcenter.uspto.gov/ (search by patent number).