New Mexico plaintiff NetMomentum LLC has filed its first litigation, launching two campaigns by suing ASUSTek (2:24-cv-00841) over a patent entitled "Semi-transparent RFID tags" in one campaign and in the other, Panasonic (2:24-cv-00844), VTech Holdings (2:24-cv-00843), and Yealink Network Technology (2:24-cv-00846), each over a single patent generally related to a base station that handles both mobile and landline telephone calls. Against ASUSTek, NetMomentum targets the provision of the Zenfone 9 smartphone, focusing in the other three complaints on the provision of telephones with a base unit and a wireless handset. All four complaints have been filed in the Eastern District of Texas.
NetMomentum was formed in New Mexico on May 28, 2024, apparently for the purpose of receiving and asserting these patents. The new complaints, all conforming to a by-now familiar boilerplate, were filed by Rabicoff Law LLC. A pattern has been developing over the course of 2024, of recently formed New Mexico plaintiffs launching litigation over patents received shortly after formation (as confirmed by assignment records later made public) and through the representation of Rabicoff Law. For other examples, see RPX's coverage of new campaigns initiated by CelluPlex LLC, Data Resonance LLC, e-Beacon LLC, Payvox LLC, and Pointwise Ventures LLC. Recently filed cases from Pointwise Ventures in the District of Delaware have provided insight into the ownership of at least that New Mexico entity; for details, see here.
The patent asserted against ASUSTek (7,714,726) issued in May 2010 to Dominic M. Kotab, a patent prosecutor with Zilka-Kotab, P.C. in San Jose, California. It has estimated priority in May 2005 and a single named inventor, Roger Green Stewart. Stewart assigned the application that led to the '726 patent to Intelleflex, which moved it to Kotab in November 2007. Intelleflex changed its name to Zest Labs in October 2016, after acquisition by Ecoark Holdings, moving from early development of "amorphous silicon technologies for a variety of applications", including "for radio frequency identification devices" (RFIDs) to a focus on "developing its Zest Fresh solutions solely for the fresh food supply chain for growers, shippers, processors[,] distributors, retailers[,] and restaurants. Publicly traded Ecoark apparently has plans to change its own name to "Zest Technologies". Stewart has operated a technical consultancy both before and after acting as the CTO of Intelleflex (from May 2003-June 2005), providing, among other things, "patent consulting" and acting as an expert witness.
The '726 patent is the first of five patents in a family that appears to have moved in a particular direction, toward poker chips and other polymers having an RFID tag. It has 127 claims, with NetMomentum's new complaint focusing on the relatively concise claim 1, which reads, "1. A Radio Frequency (RF) device, comprising: a circuit; and an antenna couple to the circuit, wherein the antenna minimally affects electromagnetic RF fields surrounding the antenna even in the vicinity of the antenna". NetMomentum's chart outlining its infringement case against provision of the Zenfone 9 identifies the Zenfone 9 as the recited RF device comprising an internal circuit and at least two identified antennas, one for Wi-Fi and another for Bluetooth: "Wi-Fi and Bluetooth are configured to work simultaneously, they operate on separate antennas, ensuring minimal interference between them despite both of them operating in 2.4 GHz range".
Currently available assignment records do not yet reflect the transfer of the '726 patent to NetMomentum, which pleads ownership. Earlier this year, RPX noted the movement of several other Kotab-held patents to Allied Security Trust late last year. For details, see "A First 2024 Look at Notable Patent Assignments" (February 2024). The Zilka in Zilka-Kotab, P.C. belongs to Kevin Zilka, another figure familiar to patent monetization, through Oso IP, a San Jose-based monetization/advisory firm. An entry point for Zilka's other connections, see "SecurityProfiling Hits VMware in Cybersecurity Campaign" (November 2023).
The patent asserted against the trio of telephone providers (10,681,507) belongs to a family of six patents with issue dates ranging from January 2020 through April 2024. The family has an earliest estimated priority date in February 2009, based on the filing of a provisional application. Here, Kotab is the sole named inventor. In February 2022, Kotab transferred the family to OnePhone Unified LLC, an entity formed in Texas on December 8, 2021 naming as its managing member Return on Invention LLC, which is tied to multiple other entities. As reported here, Kotab appears to have been the driving force behind Return on Invention and its various member-managed LLCs.
No assignment away from OnePhone Unified, of the '507 patent or its broader family, appears in currently available USPTO records. The claim charts attached to NetMomentum's complaints against Panasonic, VTech, and Yealink focus on telephone units with a "base unit" communicating with multiple handsets via Bluetooth, highlighting the operation of the Panasonic KX-TGF57x Series, VTech's DS6752-4, and Yealink's SIP-T58W Pro, respectively.
As noted, Rabicoff Law filed these complaints, according to a boilerplate format becoming increasingly familiar. The suits have yet to be assigned to a judge. 10/19, Eastern District of Texas.
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