Malikie Innovations Limited (as "the successor-in-interest to a substantial patent portfolio created and procured over many years by Blackberry") and Key Patent Innovations Limited (KPI, as "the beneficiary of a trust pursuant to which Malikie owns, holds, and asserts the Asserted Patents") have together sued Nintendo (2:24-cv-01490) in the Western District of Washington over the provision of various models of the Nintendo Switch gaming console, its dock and charger, and its parental control system. This additional case in Malikie's campaign drops as prior defendant Acer has answered an amended complaint that added KPI as a party to that case, prior defendant ASUSTek has contested venue in the Eastern District of Texas, and a notice of settlement appears likely to end litigation against D-Link.
The plaintiffs recount various communications with Nintendo in which the defendant allegedly became aware of the six asserted patents (7,529,305; 8,115,731; 8,545,247; 8,610,397; 9,313,065; 9,542,571), including notice letters sent by BlackBerry in December 2020 and January 2021 and, following Malikie's acquisition of the portfolio, a notice letter sent by Malikie in August 2023 and August 2024. The plaintiffs allege that Nintendo's infringement has been willful, pleading that it has had knowledge of most of the asserted patents as of those dates (December 2020 for the '731, '397, '305, '065 patents, August 2024 for the '247 patent, and no date specified for the '571 patent, though willfulness is still alleged as to that patent).
Infringement allegations vary for the six patents now in suit: for the '305 patent, generally related to wireless communications, they target provision of Wi-Fi connection features for the Nintendo Switch, Switch Lite, and/or Switch OLED; for the '731 patent, generally related to a device with a built-in "directional input device" for moving a graphical element onscreen such as a mouse cursor, they target the provision of the "Nintendo Switch with Joy-Con Controllers, Nintendo Switch OLED with Joy-Con Controllers, and Nintendo Switch Lite with built-in controllers"; for the '247 patent, to a dock for a "portable electronic device", the provision of the Nintendo Switch Dock; for the '397 patent, to a "battery charger for a portable wireless communications device", the Nintendo Switch with Dock (in context, this likely means the Nintendo Switch console and the Nintendo Switch Dock) as used with the accompanying Nintendo Switch AC Adapter to charge the console and wireless controllers using USB-C; for the '065 patent, to wireless communications, the Nintendo Switch, Switch Lite, and/or Switch OLED; and for the '571 patent, to managing permissions to install applications and allowing those applications to access device storage based on "owner control information" and/or security policies enforced by an organization through an "external computer", the Nintendo Parental Controls app as used on to manage parental control features on a separate Nintendo Switch console.
Malikie filed its earlier original complaints in this campaign without KPI, which characterizes itself on its public website as "an Irish-based company that identifies and invests in high value patent-based opportunities", listing a team of directors headed by Angela Quinlan. She has been in the role of KPI managing director since July 2020, listing past positions with Dublin-based monetization firm Atlantic IP Services Limited ("Vice President of Licensing and Acquisitions" from September 2019 to July 2020); with one of Atlantic IP's portfolio of plaintiffs, Solas OLED Limited ("Vice President of Licensing and Associate General Counsel" from April 2019 to July 2020); and with patent advisory firm IPValue Management (d/b/a IPValue) subsidiary Longitude Licensing Limited (patent attorney from March 2014 through April 2019).
KPI advertises three portfolios, one held by each of Malikie (the former BlackBerry patents), Pictiva Displays International Limited (former OSRAM patents), and Valtrus Innovations Limited (former HP Enterprise (HPE) patents). Valtrus has been litigating its portfolio since early 2022, and last fall, Pictiva began litigating, suing Samsung in the Eastern District of Texas. KPI's ownership model for these portfolios—with each litigating plaintiff holding their respective portfolios in trust (under Irish law) for the benefit of KPI—has come under intense pressure in the Valtrus campaign: Eastern District of Texas Chief Judge Rodney Gilstrap is in receipt of motions (at least partially redacted) to dismiss a Valtrus case for lack of standing, to amend the complaint there to add KPI as a plaintiff, to transfer that case elsewhere, and to dismiss a belt-and-suspenders action filed with KPI; and District of Delaware Judge Gregory B. Williams is in receipt of a motion to dismiss a declaratory judgment complaint pleading a violation of the Delaware Consumer Fraud Act (with related state law claims for relief). Per Valtrus, "what should have been a straightforward patent infringement case in EDTX is now mired in procedural chaos, excessive and wasteful venue-related litigation, and an unnecessary drain on the resources of two different Courts".
The Malikie case against Nintendo has been assigned to District Judge James L. Robart. Breskin Johnson & Townsend, PLLC and Reichman Jorgenson Lehman and Feldberg LLP filed the complaint. 9/17, Western District of Washington.
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