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New Patent Harbor Suits Part of a Broader Assault on the Film Industry

October 15, 2011
Intellectual Property, Movies, Patents
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Yesterday’s post about a wave of patent suits against film companies is actually part of a broader assault by Patent Harbor, LLC . Additional research shows that Patent Harbor, LLC filed a complaint entitled Patent Harbor, LLC v. Dreamworks Animation SKG, Inc, et al on May 9, 2011. The complaint contains claims against 41 (!) film companies, including various CBS Films, After Dark Films, Focus Features, HBO, and Miramax. The source of the claims is the same: U.S. Patent No. 5,684,514 ( “Apparatus and Method for Assembling Content Addressable Video.”)

  1. Patent Harbor, LLC v. Dreamworks Animation SKG, Inc, et al

Patent Wars Expand to DVDs and Blu-Rays

October 15, 2011
Intellectual Property, Movies, Patents
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On October 13, 2011, a Fort Worth, Texas company called Patent Harbor, LLC filed patent suits against various DVD and Blu-Ray companies, including Lion’s Gate Films, Warner Brothers Pictures, and The Criterion Collection. PDF versions of the complaints can be downloaded from links at the bottom of this post.

Per the current trend in patent litigation by holding companies,  the suits were filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas (Tyler Division). Corporate disclosure statements included with each complaint indicate that a Delaware company named Brandel, LLC is the sole owner of Patent Harbor.

The suits allege  that the companies violate U.S. Patent No. 5,684,514. The 514 patent, which was issued on  November 4, 1997,  is entitled “Apparatus and Method for Assembling Content Addressable Video.” The essence of the claims is demonstrated in the following language from Patent Harbor, LLC v. Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.

“Upon information and belief, Warner Bros.’s authoring or manufacture of the DVD and Blu-Ray discs, including, but not limited to, exemplary movie  License to Wed, with their content-addressing  features (e.g. illustrated chapter/scene selection) along with the authoring equipment, and/or sale  of the authored discs, on behalf of others and/or itself, infringe one or more claims of the ‘514 Patent.  Upon information and belief, Warner Bros. either performs the authoring,  manufacturing, and/or distribution or directs and controls the  authoring, manufacturing, and/or  distribution through contract. (emphasis added)

Note that the boilerplate complaints contain virtually the same language, including  a version of the paragraph presented above. I intentionally highlighted the language about “illustrated chapter/scene selection” to point out how potentially broad these claims are. Film Esq. will be closely following these cases so look for updates in the near future.

  1. Patent Harbor, LLC v. Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc.
  2. Patent Harbor, LLC v. The Criterion Collection, LLC
  3. Patent Harbor, LLC v.  Disney Enterprises, Inc.
  4. Patent Harbor, LLC v.  Lions Gate FIlms, Inc.
  5. Patent Harbor, LLC v. Shout Factory!, LLC
  6. Patent Harbor, LLC v. Platinum Disc, LLC