LOS
ANGELES, June 17, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- A week-long
patent trial in Waco, Texas,
concluded on Friday with a jury verdict against Amazon and an award
of $122 million in damages. Two
software experts affiliated with Quandary Peak Research, Dr.
Eric Koskinen and Jason Frankovitz, testified during the trial.
Koskinen and Frankovitz were retained on behalf of the plaintiff,
an advertising technology company.
The case, AlmondNet, Inc. v. Amazon.com, Inc., et al.,
was presided over by Judge Alan D.
Albright in the U.S. District Court for the Western District
of Texas. As is common in patent
trials, the jury was asked to consider whether the patents were
valid and also whether Amazon infringed them by making, selling, or
using the patented inventions.
The first patent at issue in the case, U.S. Patent No.
8,671,139, describes a system for directing electronic
advertisements. The system facilitates the "selection of media
properties on which to display an advertisement." The other patent
asserted by the plaintiff, AlmondNet, was U.S. Patent No.
7,822,639, which describes a method of securing revenue from
"offsite targeted Internet advertising."
The patented methods include various steps for displaying ads to
website visitors after they have visited some other site first. For
example, claim 37 of the '139 patent includes automatically
authorizing the second site to display an ad to a user who
previously visited the first site. Claim 24 of the '639 patent
involves both websites receiving some revenue by showing ads to
users who visited both sites.
Koskinen was the first expert witness called in the trial. On
the afternoon of the first day, Koskinen testified that the two
AlmondNet patents were infringed by Amazon's Sponsored Display and
Amazon DSP technology. Koskinen described the Amazon systems to the
jury, enabling them to understand how the complex systems
implemented the patented technology. His explanations set the
foundation for the trial's proceedings throughout the week.
Frankovitz took the stand on Thursday to answer questions on the
patents' validity. Frankovitz rebutted the testimony of Amazon's
experts that the patents were not valid. During his testimony,
Frankovitz employed a metaphor to help the jury understand how
AlmondNet's inventions work. Frankovitz said that, prior to
AlmondNet's inventions, advertising on websites was analogous to a
series of castles, with each castle only able to reach an audience
within its own walls. The inventions allowed each castle to send
messages to people inside other castles, thereby increasing the
effectiveness of the ads.
In closing arguments on Friday morning, AlmondNet's attorney
took the jury back through Koskinen's testimony, saying "We brought
Dr. Koskinen to explain Amazon's infringing system. [Dr]. Koskinen
was so thorough and careful in analyzing Amazon's crazy complex
system and describing it to you, that [Amazon's] VP of technology,
and [Amazon's expert witness] ultimately admitted that Koskinen's
description of how Amazon's system was accurate. Dead on."
The jury's verdict came back later on Friday. First, the jury
found that AlmondNet proved, by a preponderance of the evidence,
that both patents were infringed by Amazon. Second, the jury found
that Amazon had not proven, by clear and convincing evidence, that
the asserted claims of the two patents were invalid or that those
claims involved only activities or technologies that were obvious
at the time. Finally, the jury found that AlmondNet had proven that
it was entitled to $121.95
million.
Eric Koskinen is an Endowed
Associate Professor of Computer Science at Stevens Institute of Technology, where he teaches,
advises PhD students, and conducts research on reliable software
supported by grants from the federal government in excess of
$6M. He is an expert in
computer systems, concurrency, programming languages, and formal
methods.
Jason Frankovitz joined
Quandary Peak in 2014 and has testified in numerous trials since
then. His background in Internet marketing technology and knowledge
of his own patented ad targeting system were useful assets during
the case. While his considerable experience spans various areas,
his work at Quandary Peak often draws heavily on his expertise in
web applications, Internet technologies, open-source software, and
best practices in software development.
About Quandary Peak Research
Quandary Peak Research provides expert analysis of complex
technology to companies, law firms, and investors. Clients leverage
Quandary Peak's expertise in computer and software technology for
various types of civil litigation, including cases alleging patent
infringement, copyright infringement, trade secret
misappropriation, and breach of contract. Software experts at
Quandary Peak perform source code analysis, technical due
diligence, software quality audits, and forensic investigations.
Quandary Peak experts also testify as expert witnesses at hearings
and trials in U.S. District Court, state courts, the International
Trade Commission (ITC), the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office
(USPTO), and other venues.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Jeremiah Deasey
Manager of
Digital Marketing, Media, and Brand
jeremiah@quandarypeak.com
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SOURCE Quandary Peak Research