throbber

`
`
`UNITED STATES PATENT AND TRADEMARK OFFICE
`
`BEFORE THE PATENT TRIAL AND APPEAL BOARD
`
`SNAP INC.,
`Petitioner
`
`v.
`
`VAPORSTREAM, INC.,
`Patent Owner
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`PATENT OWNER’S REQUEST FOR DIRECTOR REVIEW
`PURSUANT TO UNITED STATES V. ARTHREX
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`10159604v1/016503
`
`

`

`TABLE OF CONTENTS
`
`Page
`
`INTRODUCTION ............................................................................................ 1
`

`I. 
`
`II. BACKGROUND ............................................................................................ 1
`
`A. The ’885 Patent ........................................................................................... 1
`
`B. Relevant Procedural History ........................................................................ 2
`
`
`III. ARGUMENT ................................................................................................... 3
`
`
`A. Only A Principal Officer May Conduct Director Review Pursuant to
`Arthrex ........................................................................................................... 3
`
`
`
`
`
`B. The Director Should Grant Vacatur to Allow Termination By the Board .... 6
`
`C. In the Alternative, the Director Should Vacate the FWD On the Merits .... 11
`
`
`IV. CONCLUSION .............................................................................................. 13
`
`CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE ............................................................................. 14 
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`ii
`
`

`

`TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
`
` Page(s)
`
`Cases
`A.L. Mechling Barge Lines, Inc. v. United States,
`368 U.S. 324 (1961) ........................................................................................... 8
`Arthrex, Inc. v. Smith & Nephew, Inc.,
`941 F.3d 1320 (Fed. Cir. 2019) ...................................................................... 2-3
`Cox Commc’ns, Inc. v. AT&T Intellectual Prop. II, L.P.,
`IPR2015-01536, Paper 65 (P.T.A.B. Dec. 8, 2016) ........................................... 9
`Dell Inc. v. Acceleron, LLC, 818 F.3d 1293 (Fed. Cir. 2016) ................................. 6
`Facebook, Inc. v. Windy City Innovations, LLC,
`953 F.3d 1313 (Fed. Cir. 2020) .......................................................................... 6
`Fidelity Info. Servs., LLC v. Mirror Imaging, LLC,
`CBM2017-00064, CBM2017-00065, CBM2017-00066,
`CBM2017-00067, Paper 70 (P.T.A.B. July 21, 2020) ..................................... 10
`Kaken Pharm. Co., Ltd., v. Iancu, 952 F.3d 1346 (Fed. Cir. 2021) ...................... 12
`LM-M v. Cuccinelli, 442 F. Supp. 3d 1 (D.D.C. 2020) ....................................... 5, 6
`In re MTD Prods. Inc.,
`IPR2016-00194, Paper 44 (P.T.A.B. Feb. 3, 2020) ........................................... 9
`Petroleum Geo-Services Inc. v. WesternGeco LLC,
`IPR2016-00407, IPR2016-00499, Paper 29 (P.T.A.B. July 5,
`2017) ................................................................................................................... 9
`Red Wing Shoe Co. v. Hockerson-Halberstadt, Inc.,
`148 F.3d 1355 (Fed. Cir. 1998) ........................................................................ 10
`Samsung Elecs. Co. v. Image Processing Techs. LLC,
`IPR2017-00353, IPR2017-01218, Paper 45 (P.T.A.B. Sep. 9,
`2020) ................................................................................................................. 11
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`iii
`
`

`

`Samsung Elecs. Co. v. Uniloc 2017, LLC,
`IPR2017-01797, IPR2017-01798, IPR2017-01799, IPR2017-
`01800, IPR2017-01801, IPR2017-01802, Paper 39 (P.T.A.B. July
`21, 2020) ........................................................................................................... 10
`SAS Institute Inc. v. Iancu, 138 S. Ct. 1348 (2018) ................................................. 9
`United States v. Arthrex, Inc., 141 S. Ct. 1970 (2021) .................................. Passim
`Vaporstream, Inc. v. Snap Inc.,
`No. 19-2231, Dkt. 49 (Fed. Cir. Jan. 23, 2020) .................................................. 3
`Vaporstream, Inc. v. Snap Inc.,
`No. 2019-2231, Dkt. 67 (Fed. Cir. Oct. 22, 2021) ................................... 1, 3, 10
`Statutes
`5 U.S.C. §§ 3345(a)(3), 3348(a)-(b), 3347 .............................................................. 4
`35 U.S.C. § 3(b)(2)(A) ............................................................................................. 4
`35 U.S.C. § 314(a)(4) .............................................................................................. 6
`35 U.S.C. § 317(a) ............................................................................................... 7, 8
`Other Authorities
`Arthrex Q&As, U.S.P.T.O., available at https://uspto.gov/
`patents/patent-trial-and-appealboard/procedures/arthrex-qas ............................ 7
`Regulations
`37 C.F.R. § 42.72 ..................................................................................................... 8
`
`
`
`
`iv
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`I.
`
`INTRODUCTION
`
`Patent Owner Vaporstream, Inc. (“Vaporstream”) respectfully requests
`
`Director review of the Board’s June 14, 2019 FWD. Paper 43. Vaporstream timely
`
`filed this request within 30 days of the Federal Circuit’s remand order.
`
`Vaporstream, Inc. v. Snap Inc., No. 2019-2231, Dkt. 67 (Fed. Cir. Oct. 22, 2021).
`
`II. BACKGROUND
`
`A. The ’885 Patent
`
`The ’885 Patent discloses systems and methods for reducing traceability of
`
`electronic messages so as to enhance the privacy and security of modern electronic
`
`messaging. See, e.g., Ex. 1001, Abstract. As the specification explains, the claimed
`
`invention allows “users of [] computers 315 and 320 to have a private conversation
`
`over [a] network 325” via “electronic messages 330.” Id. at 17:47-49. The
`
`specification identifies numerous problems existing in prior art electronic messaging
`
`systems because electronic messages: (1) “travel[ed] along a public network, such as
`
`the Internet, and [were] susceptible to interception by unintended third parties,” id. at
`
`1:53-56; (2) were easily “logged and archived” by the prior art systems themselves,
`
`and may be “copied, cut, pasted, printed, forwarded, blind copied, . . . manipulated”
`
`or disseminated by either the sender or the recipient, giving the messages longevity
`
`or a “shelf-life” that was “uncontrollable” and often unintended, id. at 1:56-59; and
`
`
`
`1
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`(3) typically “include[d] the message content itself coupled to identifying information
`
`regarding the sender, the recipient, the location of the message, times and dates
`
`associated with the message, etc.” which exposed them to potential “misuse” by
`
`“third parties that have gained unauthorized access,” id. at 1:61-2:6.
`
`To alleviate these problems, the patent claims methods implemented on
`
`sending user devices, which generally require:
`
` separated displays of recipient information and the message content at the
`sender’s device to prevent screenshots (of both recipient information and the
`message content) from being taken and archived by the sender for later use;
`
` separate transmission of the associated recipient information and the message
`content from the sender’s device to a server computer so that if intercepted by
`a third party, the message does not also identify the recipient; and
`
` restrictions on message content access by the sender after transmission to the
`server computer, so that further manipulation of the message content by the
`sender (or an intercepting third party) is prevented.
`
`B. Relevant Procedural History
`
`Petitioner filed a petition for IPR of the ’885 Patent on December 14, 2017.
`
`Paper 2. The Board instituted review on June 18, 2018. Paper 13. A FWD finding all
`
`challenged claims unpatentable issued on June 14, 2019. Paper 43.
`
`Vaporstream appealed the FWD to the Federal Circuit on August 5, 2019. Paper
`
`47. On October 31, 2019, the Federal Circuit issued Arthrex, Inc. v. Smith & Nephew,
`
`
`
`2
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`Inc., 941 F.3d 1320 (Fed. Cir. 2019), finding that the June 14, 2019 FWD not to have
`
`been constitutionally issued. On January 23, 2020, on Vaporstream’s motion to vacate
`
`and remand, the Federal Circuit vacated the Board’s decision and remanded for further
`
`proceedings in light of its decision. Vaporstream, Inc. v. Snap Inc., No. 19-2231, Dkt.
`
`49 (Fed. Cir. Jan. 23, 2020). On April 23, 2020, the parties had settled their dispute
`
`and the underlying district court litigation. However, before they had the opportunity
`
`to jointly move for termination of the IPR proceeding by the Board, on May 1, 2020,
`
`the Board issued a General Order holding all Arthrex-affected cases in administrative
`
`abeyance until the Supreme Court acts on a petition for certiorari. Paper 45.
`
` On June 21, 2021, the Supreme Court issued its decision in United States v.
`
`Arthrex, Inc., 141 S. Ct. 1970 (2021), vacating the Federal Circuit’s decision and
`
`remanding the case. Following the Supreme Court’s decision in Arthrex, the Federal
`
`Circuit remanded this case “for further proceedings.” Vaporstream, Inc. v. Snap Inc.,
`No. 2019-2231, Dkt. 67 (Fed. Cir. Oct. 22, 2021).
`III. ARGUMENT
`
`A. Only A Principal Officer May Conduct Director Review Pursuant to
`Arthrex
`
`
`Vaporstream’s request for Director review cannot be decided until a new PTO
`
`Director is appointed and confirmed, because there is currently no principal officer at
`
`the PTO who can issue a FWD under Arthrex. Under Arthrex, the Supreme Court held
`
`
`
`3
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`that the Appointments Clause violation may be remedied only when “the Director” of
`
`the PTO—that is, a President-appointed, Senate-confirmed “principal officer”—has
`
`an opportunity “to review decisions rendered by APJs” who are inferior officers.
`
`Arthrex, 141 S. Ct. at 1988. The PTO currently lacks such “an officer properly
`
`appointed to a principal office [able to] issue a final decision binding the Executive
`
`Branch.” Id. at 1985. Mr. Andrew H. Hirschfeld, the Commissioner for Patents
`
`currently and temporarily “performing the functions and duties” of the PTO Director,
`
`is unable to fulfill Arthrex’s mandate because he was neither named by the President
`
`nor confirmed by the Senate to his role. See 35 U.S.C. § 3(b)(2)(A) (“The Secretary
`
`of Commerce shall appoint a Commissioner for Patents. . . .”).
`
`Nor has Mr. Hirschfeld been conferred the Director’s review authority as the
`
`“Acting Director” within the meaning of the Federal Vacancies Reform Act. Under
`
`the FVRA, when a principal office is vacant, any functions or duties “required by
`
`statute to be performed by the [principal] officer (and only that officer)” may only be
`
`performed by “the first assistant to the office” or a person directed by “the President
`
`(and only the President).” 5 U.S.C. §§ 3345(a)(3), 3348(a)-(b), 3347. Mr. Hischfeld,
`
`having never served as the first assistant to the previous Director, and not having been
`
`named “Acting Director” by “the President (and only the President),” falls short of
`
`
`
`4
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`satisfying the requirements of the FVRA to be an “Acting Director.”1
`
`Nor can it be said that Mr. Hirschfeld is currently exercising authority delegated
`
`by a principal officer, the PTO Director. See 37 CF.R. § 1.181(g). To wit, the
`
`Director’s post is currently vacant; accordingly, there is no person charged with
`
`delegating his duties, no person who could revoke the delegation of authority, or who
`
`could supervise Mr. Hirschfeld’s exercise of delegated authority. “The fact that an
`
`officer holds a PAS [Presidentially-appointed and Senate-confirmed] office does not
`
`mean, however, that one who performs the duties of that office in an acting capacity
`
`is also a PAS officer.” LM-M v. Cuccinelli, 442 F. Supp. 3d 1, 23-24 (D.D.C. 2020).
`
`Actions that are committed exclusively to a principal officer, but performed “without
`
`lawful authority” by a non-PAS officeholder, such as Mr. Hirschfeld as Commissioner
`
`
`1 Indeed, the Supreme Court’s passing reference to a “remand to the Acting Director”
`in Arthrex is not at odds with this proposition. Arthrex, 141 S. Ct. at 1987. In Arthrex,
`neither the Court nor the parties addressed Mr. Hirshfeld’s official status or
`appointment, whether he qualifies as an “Acting Director,” or whether a non-
`President-appointed and non-Senate-confirmed officer could fill that role. Arguably,
`the Court seemingly had in mind the appointment of an “Acting Director” until a
`Director can be appointed, confirmed, and sworn in. To the contrary, permitting an
`inferior officer to issue a FWD upon “Director review” which binds the Executive
`Branch would fly in the face of the Court’s express holding that “[o]nly an officer
`properly appointed to a principal office may issue a final decision.” Id. at 1985
`(emphasis added) (reasoning that inferior officers “lack[] the power under the
`Constitution to finally resolve [patentability questions]” and therefore “must be
`directed and supervised . . . by others who were appointed by Presidential nomination
`with the advice and consent of the Senate.”).
`
`
`
`5
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`for Patents, “must be set aside.” Id. at 35-37.
`
`In addition, the Administrative Procedure Act subjects the PTO’s proposed
`
`procedures for implementing Arthrex to a formal rulemaking process. 35 U.S.C.
`
`§ 314(a)(4); Dell Inc. v. Acceleron, LLC, 818 F.3d 1293, 1301 (Fed. Cir. 2016). Until
`
`the PTO has undergone that process, the PTO cannot provide the Director review
`
`required by Arthrex and any “review” that is the result of an interim procedure it does
`
`provide is in violation of the APA. Facebook, Inc. v. Windy City Innovations, LLC,
`
`953 F.3d 1313, 1342-43 (Fed. Cir. 2020) (procedural requirements of the APA apply
`
`in cases involving formal adjudication).
`
`Consistent with the Supreme Court’s holding in Arthrex, Mr. Hirschfeld cannot
`
`decide this request for Director review, and any decision on Vaporstream’s request
`
`must await the appointment of an Acting Director by the President, be the result of a
`
`formal rule promulgation process under the APA, and/or occur after the appointment
`
`and confirmation of a new PTO Director. Arthrex, 141 S. Ct. at 1980, 1985, 1988.
`
`B. The Director Should Grant Vacatur to Allow Termination By the
`Board
`
`Given the parties’ settlement in April 2020, the Director should vacate the FWD
`
`and remand to the Board with instructions to terminate the IPR proceeding. Under the
`
`interim procedures for Arthrex-mandated Director review, the Director is vested with
`
`wide discretion to “decide any issue . . . de novo,” “to conduct a sua sponte Director
`
`
`
`6
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`review,” and to grant review based on “novel issues of law or policy, . . . issues of
`
`particular importance to the Office or patent community, or inconsistencies with
`
`Office procedures, guidance, or decisions.” Arthrex Q&As, U.S.P.T.O., available at
`
`https://www.uspto.gov/patents/patent-trial-and-appealboard/procedures/arthrex-qas.
`
`The Director should exercise his discretion here for at least six reasons.
`
`First, under Arthrex, the June 14, 2019 FWD was constitutionally unsound and
`
`the PTO “has not finally decided the merits of the proceeding” within the meaning of
`
`35 U.S.C. § 317(a) until the Director has had an opportunity to enter a rehearing
`
`decision. Arthrex, 141 S. Ct. at 1980, 1985, 1988. Given the lack of a constitutionally
`
`sound FWD thus far, the Director has the authority to vacate the FWD and terminate
`
`the proceeding as expressly contemplated by 35 U.S.C. § 317(a). The Director should
`
`seize this opportunity and grant vacatur in order to acknowledge that a decision issued
`
`by a panel of APJs appointed in violation of the Appointments Clause is
`
`constitutionally unsound and therefore not “finally decided” under 35 U.S.C. § 317(a).
`
`Arthrex, 141 S. Ct. at 1985 (“Only an officer properly appointed to a principal office
`
`may issue a final decision binding the Executive Branch in the proceeding before us.”).
`
`Second, vacatur is warranted pursuant to United States v. Munsingwear, Inc.,
`
`which held that it is “established practice” for a court reviewing “a civil case from a
`
`court in the federal system which has become moot while on its way [t]here or pending
`
`
`
`7
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`[a review] decision” to “reverse or vacate the judgment below and remand with a
`
`direction to dismiss.” 340 U.S. 36, 39 (1950). Munsingwear-type vacatur is proper
`
`where a case has become moot pending appeal, and is “at least equally applicable to
`
`unreviewed administrative orders.” A.L. Mechling Barge Lines, Inc. v. United States,
`
`368 U.S. 324, 329 (1961). The Director should vacate under Munsingwear because of
`
`the parties’ settlement 19 months ago while the case was being appealed to the Federal
`
`Circuit (and later remanded because of Arthrex).
`
`Third, the absence of an adverse party due to settlement also compels the
`
`Director to vacate the FWD so as to allow the Board to terminate the proceeding. The
`
`posture of this proceeding has fundamentally changed since April 2020, when it was
`
`being appealed to the Federal Circuit and when the sole Petitioner and Appellee, Snap
`
`Inc., withdrew from the case due to settlement. Accordingly, because the Petitioner
`
`will no longer participate in the proceeding, there is no basis for the Director to
`
`proceed to re-issue a FWD. Under 35 U.S.C. § 317(a), “[i]f no petitioner remains in
`
`the inter partes review, the Office may terminate the review or proceed to a final
`
`written decision under section 318(a).” See also 37 C.F.R. § 42.72 (“The Board may
`
`terminate a trial without rendering a final written decision, where appropriate . . . .”).
`
`Here, with no adverse party participating in the proceedings, the principles of
`
`efficiency, judicial and administrative economy, and conservation of resources
`
`
`
`8
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`counsel vacatur by the Director, rather than issuance of a new FWD. See, e.g., Cox
`
`Commc’ns, Inc. v. AT&T Intellectual Prop. II, L.P., IPR2015-01536, Paper 65 at 3
`
`(P.T.A.B. Dec. 8, 2016) (“[T]ermination of the proceedings would save significant
`
`additional expenditures of resources by the Board and the parties, and would further
`
`serve the purpose of inter partes review proceedings to provide an efficient and less
`
`costly alternative forum for patent disputes.”); Petroleum Geo-Services Inc. v.
`
`WesternGeco LLC, IPR2016-00407, IPR2016-00499, Paper 29 at 3 (P.T.A.B. July 5,
`
`2017) (terminating the IPR “because it promotes efficiency and minimizes
`
`unnecessary costs”). Indeed, the Board has terminated proceedings where the only
`
`petitioner withdrew during appeal and the patent owner requested termination at the
`
`outset of the post-appeal remand. See, e.g., In re MTD Prods. Inc., IPR2016-00194,
`
`Paper 44 at 3-4 (P.T.A.B. Feb. 3, 2020). The same should apply here, where vacatur
`
`would be the best course of action because no adversary remains, and IPRs are “a
`
`party directed, adversarial process.” SAS Institute Inc. v. Iancu, 138 S. Ct. 1348, 1355
`
`(2018) (Congress designed IPRs to be “adversarial” rather than an “agency-led,
`
`inquisitorial process.”).
`
`Fourth, vacatur would not be inconsistent with the Federal Circuit’s broad
`
`remand instructions in the case, which ordered a remand “for further proceedings” and
`
`directed “the parties to inform th[e] court within 14 days of any action by the [PTO.]”
`
`
`
`9
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`Vaporstream, Inc. v. Snap Inc., No. 2019-2231, Dkt. 67 at 1-2 (Fed. Cir. Oct. 22,
`
`2021) (emphasis added). Indeed, “any action” does not preclude a vacatur and remand
`
`to the Board to terminate the proceeding.
`
`Fifth, vacatur and termination by the Board would also be consistent with the
`
`strong public and judicial “policy favoring settlement.” Red Wing Shoe Co. v.
`
`Hockerson-Halberstadt, Inc., 148 F.3d 1355, 1361 (Fed. Cir. 1998). Not vacating will
`
`cause Vaporstream, the Office, the Director, and eventually the Federal Circuit to
`
`waste their resources wrestling with an appeal that can be avoided entirely by simply
`
`terminating the proceeding. Termination due to the parties’ settlement and before a
`
`constitutionally issued FWD was reached is in the interests of justice and both
`
`administrative and judicial economy.
`
`Sixth and finally, the Director should vacate and remand to the Board, so the
`
`Board may terminate as it had done in several cases in the same or similar posture as
`
`the present case—i.e., settlement by the parties before the issuance of a
`
`constitutionally sound FWD. See, e.g., Samsung Elecs. Co. v. Uniloc 2017, LLC,
`
`IPR2017-01797, IPR2017-01798, IPR2017-01799, IPR2017-01800, IPR2017-01801,
`
`IPR2017-01802, Paper 39 (P.T.A.B. July 21, 2020) (granting motion to terminate six
`
`IPRs after the Federal Circuit vacated the FWDs and remanded the cases); Fidelity
`
`Info. Servs., LLC v. Mirror Imaging, LLC, CBM2017-00064, CBM2017-00065,
`
`
`
`10
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`CBM2017-00066, CBM2017-00067, Paper 70 (P.T.A.B. July 21, 2020) (same for
`
`four CBMs upon remand by the Federal Circuit); Samsung Elecs. Co. v. Image
`
`Processing Techs. LLC, IPR2017-00353, IPR2017-01218, Paper 45 (P.T.A.B. Sep. 9,
`
`2020) (same, for two cases remanded by the Federal Circuit). The PTO’s practice of
`
`granting requests for termination pursuant to settlement but before a constitutionally
`
`issued FWD remains appropriate under the Supreme Court’s decision in Arthrex, and
`
`the Director should endorse that procedure by affording the Board an opportunity to
`
`do so upon vacating and remanding the instant proceeding.
`
`C. In the Alternative, the Director Should Vacate the FWD On the Merits
`
`In the alternative, Vaporstream respectfully requests that the FWD be vacated
`
`on the merits. The Board committed legal error by misinterpreting the scope of
`
`“message content including a media component,” which in turn infected its
`
`obviousness analysis concerning at least Saffer. FWD at 12-16, 22-35, 36-44.
`
`The Board arrived at the wrong claim construction of “message content
`
`including a media component” by ignoring the specification, which explicitly teaches
`
`that “a message content of an electronic message may include an attached and/or
`
`linked file,” as well as expert testimony concerning the same. POR at 22-24.
`
`The Board’s construction had the effect of excluding from the scope of a
`
`“message content including a media component” any URL-linked file or content,
`
`
`
`11
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`despite Dr. Almeroth’s explanation that in view of the patent’s “separate
`
`transmissions” limitation, the treatment of a message content including a URL link
`
`and a message content without such a link remains the same. Ex. 2009 at ¶¶48, 108-
`
`12. This misinterpretation by the Board caused it to conclude, erroneously, that Saffer
`
`disclosed the “separate transmission” limitation of the challenged claims, even though
`
`Saffer’s system sends a single email that provides both the identity of the recipient
`
`and the linked message content/media component, which runs contrary to the “reduced
`
`traceability” purpose of the invention. FWD at 33-35; PO Sur-reply at 10-16. Because
`
`that construction is in error, the conclusion in the FWD must be vacated. See, e.g.,
`
`Kaken Pharm. Co., Ltd., v. Iancu, 952 F.3d 1346, 1348 (Fed. Cir. 2021) (“Because the
`
`Board’s obviousness analysis materially relied on its erroneous claim construction, we
`
`cannot affirm the Board’s unpatentability determination.”).
`
`The Board also erroneously concluded that the combination of Namias and
`
`Saffer would teach or suggest separate displays—another important limitation of the
`
`challenged claims. FWD at 22-28. Indeed, Saffer would not have motivated, but would
`
`have actually discouraged, a POSITA from choosing a sequence of screens to
`
`compose a single email, given its express depiction (in Figure 6) of a single, integrated
`
`interface to accomplish the same task. POPR at 37-42; PO Sur-reply at 18-19. The
`
`Board fails to explain why a POSITA would have ignored the teaching-away by Saffer
`
`
`
`12
`
`

`

`
`
`Inter Partes Review No. IPR2018-00312
`U.S. Patent No. 9,306,885
`
`to adopt the protracted multiscreen interface disclosed in Namias.
`
`Given the Board’s errors, Director review and vacatur is the appropriate remedy
`
`in this case. Vaporstream respectfully requests reversal of the Board’s finding that the
`
`challenged claims are obvious over Namias, Saffer, and Smith.
`
`IV. CONCLUSION
`
`For the foregoing reasons, the Director or Mr. Hirschfeld, to the extent he has
`
`such authority, should vacate the FWD and remand to the Board for it to terminate
`
`the IPR proceeding, or to find claims 1 and 6 of the ’885 patent not unpatentable.
`
`Dated: November 22, 2021
`
`
` Respectfully submitted,
`
`
`By: /Michael F. Heim/
`Michael F. Heim (Reg. No. 32,702)
`Attorney for Patent Owner
`Vaporstream, Inc.
`
`
`
`
`13
`
`

`

`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`
`CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
`
`The undersigned certifies that a true copy of the foregoing PATENT
`
`OWNER’S REQUEST FOR DIRECTOR REVIEW PURSUANT TO UNITED
`
`STATES V. ARTHREX was served on November 22, 2021 to the following lead
`
`and back-up counsel for petitioner via e- mail:
`
`
`
`Lead Counsel
`Heidi L. Keefe (Reg. No. 40,673)
`hkeefe@cooley.com
`zSnapVaporstream@cooley.com
`
`Cooley LLP
`ATTN: Patent Group
`1299 Pennsylvania Ave NW
`Suite 700
`Washington, DC 20004
`Tel: 650-843-5001
`Fax: 650-849-7400
`
`
`
`Back-Up Counsel
`Andrew C. Mace (Reg. No. 63,342)
`amace@cooley.com
`Mark R. Weinstein (pro hac vice)
`mweinstein@cooley.com
`Reuben Chen (pro hac vice)
`rchen@cooley.com
`Yuan Liang (pro hac vice)
`yliang(cooley.com)
`zSnapVaporstream@cooley.com
`
`Cooley LLP
`ATTN: Patent Group
`1299 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
`Suite 700
`Washington, DC 20004
`Tel: 650-843-5001
`Fax: 650-849-7400
`
`
`By: /Michael F. Heim/
`Michael F. Heim (Reg. No. 32,702)
`Attorney for Patent Owner
`Vaporstream, Inc.
`
`
`
`14
`
`

This document is available on Docket Alarm but you must sign up to view it.


Or .

Accessing this document will incur an additional charge of $.

After purchase, you can access this document again without charge.

Accept $ Charge
throbber

Still Working On It

This document is taking longer than usual to download. This can happen if we need to contact the court directly to obtain the document and their servers are running slowly.

Give it another minute or two to complete, and then try the refresh button.

throbber

A few More Minutes ... Still Working

It can take up to 5 minutes for us to download a document if the court servers are running slowly.

Thank you for your continued patience.

This document could not be displayed.

We could not find this document within its docket. Please go back to the docket page and check the link. If that does not work, go back to the docket and refresh it to pull the newest information.

Your account does not support viewing this document.

You need a Paid Account to view this document. Click here to change your account type.

Your account does not support viewing this document.

Set your membership status to view this document.

With a Docket Alarm membership, you'll get a whole lot more, including:

  • Up-to-date information for this case.
  • Email alerts whenever there is an update.
  • Full text search for other cases.
  • Get email alerts whenever a new case matches your search.

Become a Member

One Moment Please

The filing “” is large (MB) and is being downloaded.

Please refresh this page in a few minutes to see if the filing has been downloaded. The filing will also be emailed to you when the download completes.

Your document is on its way!

If you do not receive the document in five minutes, contact support at support@docketalarm.com.

Sealed Document

We are unable to display this document, it may be under a court ordered seal.

If you have proper credentials to access the file, you may proceed directly to the court's system using your government issued username and password.


Access Government Site

We are redirecting you
to a mobile optimized page.





Document Unreadable or Corrupt

Refresh this Document
Go to the Docket

We are unable to display this document.

Refresh this Document
Go to the Docket