UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`
`____________
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`
`____________
`
`Unified Patents Inc.,
`Petitioner
`v.
`
`Personalized Media Communications, LLC,
`Patent Owner
`
`
`
`IPR2015-00521
`
`Patent 7,801,304
`
`____________
`
`PETITIONER’S VOLUNTARY INTERROGATORY RESPONSES
`
`!
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`!
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`! ! !
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`!
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`Unified Patents Inc. Ex. 1018, pg. 1
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`
`
`____________
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`
`____________
`
`Unified Patents Inc.,
`Petitioner
`v.
`
`Personalized Media Communications, LLC,
`Patent Owner
`
`
`
`IPR2015-00521
`
`Patent 7,801,304
`
`____________
`
`PETITIONER’S VOLUNTARY INTERROGATORY RESPONSES
`
`!
`
`!
`
`! ! !
`
`!
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`Unified Patents Inc. Ex. 1018, pg. 1
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`
`
`!
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`!
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`Petitioner, Unified Patents Inc., provides the following voluntary
`
`interrogatory responses.
`
`DEFINITIONS
`
`A. ’304 PATENT means U.S. Patent No. 7,801,304.
`
`B. COMMUNICATIONS means the transmission or receipt of information of
`
`any kind through any means (e.g., email, text message, voicemail, audio,
`
`computer readable media, or orally).
`
`C. MEMBER means any company that participates in UNIFIED’S solution and
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`MEMBERS means all such companies.
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`D. IPR means inter partes review
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`E. THE INSTANT IPR means this proceeding.
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`F. PETITION means the petition, including the exhibits thereto, for THE
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`INSTANT IPR.
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`G. UNIFIED means Unified Patents, Inc. and includes any shareholder, officer,
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`director, employee, agent, representative, privies, intermediaries or other
`
`individual authorized to act on behalf of Unified Patents, Inc.
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`H. USPTO means the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
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`
`
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`!
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`Unified Patents Inc. Ex. 1018, pg. 2
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`!
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`
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`RESPONSES TO INTERROGATORIES
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`INTERROGATORY NO. 1:
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`Identify any COMMUNICATIONS between UNIFIED and any entity other than
`
`its counsel relating to the financing, preparation, editing, prior review, or approval
`
`of the PETITION.
`
`RESPONSE NO. 1:
`
`Unified Patents states that no such communications exist.
`
`Unified Patents states that it was founded by intellectual property
`
`professionals over concerns with the increasing risk of non-practicing entities
`
`(NPEs) asserting poor quality patents against strategic technologies and industries.
`
`The founders thus created a first-of-its-kind company whose sole purpose is to
`
`deter NPE litigation by protecting technology sectors, like content management,
`
`the technology at issue in the ’304 patent. Companies in a technology sector
`
`subscribe to Unified Patents’ technology specific deterrence, and in turn, Unified
`
`Patents performs many NPE-deterrent activities, such as analyzing the technology
`
`sector and monitoring patent activity (including patent ownership and sales, NPE
`
`demand letters and litigation, and industry companies). Unified Patents’
`
`monitoring activities allow it to identify patents, perform prior art research, analyze
`
`invalidity, and to sometimes file reexams or IPRs against some patents.
`
`!
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`Unified Patents Inc. Ex. 1018, pg. 3
`
`
`
`!
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`Unified Patents states that it has sole and absolute discretion over its
`
`decision to contest patents through the USPTO’s post-grant proceedings. Based on
`
`its own analysis, Unified Patents determines which patents are worth pursuing in
`
`terms of searching for prior art or taking action, including filing an IPR. Unified
`
`Patents’ decisions to file an IPR are made independently without the input,
`
`assistance or approval of its MEMBERS. Should Unified Patents decide to
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`challenge a patent in a post-grant proceeding, Unified Patents controls every aspect
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`of such a challenge, including controlling which patent and claims to challenge,
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`which prior art to apply and the grounds raised in the challenge, and when to bring
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`any challenge.
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`MEMBERS receive no prior notice of Unified Patents’ patent challenges.
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`After filing a post-grant proceeding, Unified Patents retains sole and absolute
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`discretion and control over all strategy decisions (including any decision to
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`continue or terminate Unified Patents’ participation). Unified Patents is also solely
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`responsible for paying for the preparation, filing, and prosecution of any post-grant
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`proceeding, including any expenses associated with the proceeding.
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`In THE INSTANT IPR, Unified Patents exercised its sole discretion and
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`control in deciding to file this PETITION against the ’304 patent, including paying
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`for all fees and expenses. Unified Patents shall exercise sole and absolute control
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`and discretion of the continued prosecution of this proceeding (including any
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`!
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`Unified Patents Inc. Ex. 1018, pg. 4
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`
`
`!
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`decision to terminate Unified Patents’ participation) and shall bear all subsequent
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`costs related to this proceeding.
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`
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`INTERROGATORY NO. 2: Identify any individuals acting for or on behalf of
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`any entity other than UNIFIED’S counsel that participated or assisted in any way
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`with the financing, preparation, editing, prior review, approval, or filing of the
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`PETITION.
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`RESPONSE NO. 2:
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`
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`Unified Patents states that no such individuals exist. Unified Patents further
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`states that no individuals other than Unified Patents’ employees and its counsel had
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`any prior knowledge of the filing of THE INSTANT IPR.
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`
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`As stated in response to Interrogatory No. 1, in the instant proceeding,
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`Unified Patents exercised its sole discretion and control in deciding to file this
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`petition against the ’304 patent, including paying for all fees and expenses.
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`Unified Patents shall exercise sole and absolute control and discretion of the
`
`continued prosecution of this proceeding (including any decision to terminate
`
`Unified Patents’ participation) and shall bear all subsequent costs related to this
`
`proceeding.
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`Unified Patents further states that its MEMBERS do not get to participate in
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`any way in Unified Patents’ deterrent activities. Unified Patents does not receive
`
`!
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`Unified Patents Inc. Ex. 1018, pg. 5
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`
`
`!
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`input from its MEMBERS, nor give them an opportunity to participate or an
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`opportunity to even know that Unified Patents is contemplating filing an IPR
`
`before the IPR is filed. In the instant proceeding, none of Unified Patents’
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`MEMBERS had any prior knowledge of, or involvement in, the preparation and
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`filing of THE INSTANT IPR.
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`
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`INTERROGATORY NO. 3:
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`Identify payments by any entity to UNIFIED relating to the financing of THE
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`INSTANT IPR.
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`RESPONSE NO. 3:
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`
`
`
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`Unified Patents states that no such payments exist.
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`Unified Patents states that its MEMBERS pay only a yearly subscription fee to a
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`specific technology zone, and in return, Unified Patents performs its many NPE-
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`deterrent activities. Unified Patents’ MEMBERS do not pay any fees designated for
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`IPRs, let alone for IPRs against specific patents. It is Unified Patents and Unified
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`Patents alone that determines how to spend its money. Unified Patents independently
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`selects which patents to target based on the perceived deterrent value to a technology
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`zone. Based on its own analysis, Unified Patents determines which patents are worth
`
`pursuing in terms of filing an IPR or performing some other activity. Unified Patents’
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`decisions to file an IPR are made independently without the input, assistance, or
`
`!
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`Unified Patents Inc. Ex. 1018, pg. 6
`
`
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`approval of its MEMBERS. Unified Patents states that there are no explicit or implicit
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`agreements with its MEMBERS about Unified Patents’ performing any particular
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`deterrent strategy, including THE INSTANT IPR.
`
`
`Unified Patents Inc.
`
`
`By: /Michael L. Kiklis/
`Michael L. Kiklis, Reg. No. 38,939
`OBLON, SPIVAK, MCCLELLAND, MAIER & NEUSTADT, L.L.P.
`1940 Duke Street
`Alexandria, Virginia 22314
`703-413-3000
`
`
`
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`Unified Patents Inc. Ex. 1018, pg. 7
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`
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`!
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`VERIFICATION
`
`I, Kevin Jakel, state that I am CEO of Unified Patents Inc., and that I am
`authorized to make this verification for and on its behalf. I certify that I have read
`the foregoing Interrogatory responses, and that the responses are true and accurate
`to the best of my own knowledge, information and belief. Further, I make this
`verification with the knowledge that willful false statements and the like so made
`are punishable by fine or imprisonment, or both, under Section 1001 of Title 18 of
`the United States Code and that such willful false statements may jeopardize the
`results of these proceedings.
`
` declare under penalty of perjury that the foregoing is true and correct.
`
`By: ____________________
` Kevin Jakel
`
` I
`
`
`
`
`
`!
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`Unified Patents Inc. Ex. 1018, pg. 8
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