EDekka LLC filed a lawsuit against 160 major US retailers, including Tiffany & Co. and Zale Corporation. The basis of the claim was a violation of patent rights in connection with the use of the function "basket" on the websites of retailers, Rapaport reports.
The basis of the claim of eDekka is US Patent No. 6,266,674 (the so-called "patent 674"), reissued on July 24, 2001. eDekka states that a patent entitled "Providing public access to an information sample using user-defined identifiers" extends to the method and devices for storing information, if the user enters and determines the data structure. However, in the text of the patent there is no mention of any functions of sites or the basket.
Claims for patent infringement were filed in the US District Court of the Eastern District of Texas, a division of Marshall. Judge Rodney Gilstrap over the past two months has rejected about 30 patent infringement lawsuits filed by eDekka in 2013, of which respondents included Avon Inc., Apple Inc., Sierra Trading Post Inc., Crutchfield Corporation and Coldwater Creek Inc. Similar cases remain open against more than 100 companies, including B & H Photo Corporation, Barneys New York Inc., Coach Inc., Dillard's Inc., Gilt Groupe Inc., Kohl's Corporation, JC Penney Inc., Macy's Inc., Liberty Interactive Corporation, Nordstrom Inc. and Saks Inc.
Representatives of Tiffany & Co. and Zale did not comment on the lawsuits.
In the meantime, the Patent Progress website on patent and patent reform issues called eDekka one of the most active "patent trolls" after the company initiated 87 new lawsuits in April (including suits against Tiffany & Co. and Zale). Matt Levy noted that "only because eDekka has the opportunity to file a claim containing a completely stupid and unclear complaint", the defendants are forced to bear the costs, collecting evidence in their defense in this case.
According to the National Retail Federation of the United States (NRF), "patent trolls" cost the US economy $ 30 billion a year.